Across America
by Ami Angel
Summary: Four years ago, the 12 Chosen Children split up while visiting New York. Only Hikari was left behind. With the help of her two best friends, she wants to find them again. The only problem is, she doesn't know where any of them are. Can they find each
1. Default Chapter

Intro: Erm, here's a fic, the ages in the past were different from the actual ages in the show, k? Also, I have no idea what Kingston, New York looks like, but my old friend lives there. Really, I'm not a big fan of any of the couples I stuck in here, except for our little Hope and Light, of course. It just worked out this way.

Across America

Prologue

It was…so long ago. Four years, really. Funny, it seems like I can't really remember much of what happened, but of course I wasn't there for the most part. What's my name? It's Kari. Kari Kamiya. Although my name should be Yagami Hikari. My real name is Yagami Hikari. Why am I under a pseudonym? Because Kari is easier to say in English. Yes, I'm Japanese, and I live in America. Kingston, New York to be exact. My friend Mimi used to live a few blocks away. But she left. They all left a long time ago. Four years ago…

* * *

I was so nervous. Us girls of the Chosen Children group had gotten together and decided to tell the boys our true feelings. It was kind of awkward, I mean, we were a really close group, great friends. Something like this could blow us apart. I wish I'd known how true that was before, but I didn't really think. I just wanted to think of Takeru. I knew Daisuke would be crushed, but I didn't love him. That's understandable, right? Anyway, all of us had flown to Kingston to visit Mimi and Michael, and we were staying at Michael's big house. It was in the afternoon when we arrived, and it was (naturally) raining. It was summer too! But we didn't even put our bags on the ground of the living room when Mimi announced, "Okay! Girls, let's go! Hikari-chan, you go first!"

Of course, make Hikari go first, I thought sighing. But sooner or later, it had to be done. Rather shakily, I cleared my throat and said, "Takeru-kun, I have a confession to make. I've known you for a long time, and I've fallen in love with you. I love you!" I blurted, cringing at my wording. 

There was a silence. No one really looked surprised, not even Daisuke. Slowly, Takeru's face lit up as the words processed. "Hikari-chan, I love you too! I'm sorry I was too chicken to say it first-"

I didn't let him finish as I through myself into his arms and hugged him hard. I could feel Takeru freeze and shout, "Daisuke-kun, wait!"

But it was too late. Daisuke ran out of the door and out into Kingston, still holding his bags of belongings. Takeru cursed. "Hikari-chan, I think I'd better talk to him. I think it'd be better if I talked to him, before he does something stupid."

I nodded and let go of him. Putting down his stuff, my beloved Takeru ran out the door, and that was the last time I've seen him. "Um, Miyako, maybe you should confess now…"

The purple-haired girl nodded slowly. Shifting uncomfortably, she said slowly, "Ken-kun, I…I have a crush on you."

Ken looked surprised that she had said it. "Miyako-san! I…I…how can I say this?"

Miyako dropped her eyes. "It's all right, Ken-kun. I understand. It's all right." But she couldn't stop the tears from falling off her face and fogging her glasses. "I understand. I understand what you want. Okay. I'll leave."

"Miyako-san! That's not what I meant at all!"

But sobbing her eyes out, the girl had already left with her bags, Ken hot on her heels. Mimi grimaced. "This isn't going well, is it? Well Sora, we might as well say it, but keep a grip on those boys!"

With her reddish eyes on Taichi, Sora opened her mouth, but Taichi cut her off. "Sora, I think we'd better find the others first! We all know what happens when the Chosen Children get separated. Please, let's talk later."

Sora looked shocked. "Taichi…how can you just say that? Don't I mean anything at all to you? Of course I know that this is a bad situation, but I vowed to tell you this today, and you won't listen!"

"Sora, please understand. I love you too!"

"Are you sure you're not just saying that? Because I honestly love you, and I've loved you since elementary school! But you know what? You're right, we do have to find the others. Let's go."

She turned and walked toward the door. So did Taichi. Yamato asked Mimi, "You too? Me?"

Mimi nodded happily. They embraced, then left too. 

"Wow, that was something," remarked Jou. "Come on, we'd better go too. Hikari-chan, stay here in case someone comes back and they might need calming down."

I nodded mutely. That had gone _horrible_. Sora and Taichi would most likely be all right, with a little talking, but what about Miyako and Ken? Sighing, I plopped down on a couch and sat. For about an hour. 

Yamato and Michael came in, and slammed the door. They looked unhappy. "Hikari-chan, I'm so sorry. I have to leave." Yamato said blankly. But he and Michael picked up all the bags on the floor, with an apologetic glance to me. What was going on?

They left, and I sat there, frozen. Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, this can not be happening! My head screamed. Slowly, like my feet were made of lead, I made my way to a window. Michael's house was, like I said, big, and there was a very tall porch, so it was like being on the second floor on the first. Yamato and Michael were at the bottom of the stairs, along with Taichi, Jou, Koushirou, Miyako, and Daisuke. Sora, Ken, Mimi, Takeru, and Iori were already gone, and so were their stuff. They were talking, and…raising their hands in farewell?! What was going on? The group dispersed, and Michael came back up. "Hikari-chan? Are you there?"

"Michael-san…what's happening? Why is everyone leaving?"

"Hikari-chan, I'm…sorry. Things didn't go well. We…need to leave each other alone for a while. But Taichi asked me to take care of you until then."

I shook my head vigorously. "No, what's going on? What happened? Why didn't Oniichan talk to me? Why didn't Takeru-kun say goodbye then? Michael-san, What's going on?"

The blond sighed. "It's…complicated. Bad things were said. Everyone's hurt. I can't stop them. They won't stop themselves. They're leaving. You can stay if you want, but you'd probably want to go home now, right?"

My eyes hardened. "No. I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay here. Let me e-mail our parents. I can't leave without the others. Where did they go?"

"Well…I don't know. No one said where they were going."

Despair flooded my heart. How could they do this to me? "But, even a little kid like Iori-kun is going out somewhere? It's not safe!"

"You and Takeru-kun could take care of yourselves when you were eight. This is no different."

I sank down. Something in me didn't want to go after them. Something in me told me that this was what was right, but it wasn't! "All right, Michael-san. I understand. They want to be alone. That's fine. But may I stay here until they come back?"

And he agreed. What else could he do? It was the least he could do. But they didn't come back. And it's been four years.

* * *

Now that I think about it, I was really stupid for not doing something more. Not going after them before they got too far away. But I didn't. And I can't change the past. I'm still living at Michael's place. His parents were really nice. My parents want me to come home. They all want us to come home. But the only thing I can tell them is that no one is coming home. They said that they understood. They really understand, not the way we said we understood but really didn't. Now I'm 15, going to Levine Riviera High School. Back at home, I would have still been in middle school. But that's okay. English wasn't too hard to learn, with Mimi teaching us some before. I have lots of good friends, and they understand my situation without asking too many questions. I have lots of fun, and sometimes I can even forget about why I'm in Kingston in the first place. Now, searching is stupid. America is too huge to scour every city for them, and what if I don't recognize them anymore? I've been careful to keep my look as similar as possible to when I was 11, just in case. But even so, I know that one day I'll find them. Maybe I'll even need the digimon's help. I've gone to the Digital World a couple of times, but the gate isn't open very often in America. I feel so bad, every time they e-mail me, they want to know if their partner has shown up. But they haven't. And I'm sorry I haven't found them. I'll keep up my hope…

Haha, next time…I'll have to think of something. 


	2. Hikari

Intro: Chapter 1, here we go! Now the story is told from third-person. Jessica and Cara are my characters. Also, I'm not sure how the school system works in New York, so I'm just using what I know of my sister's high school. To be honest, I don't know where NYU is, so I have no idea if it's close by to Kingston or not, but hopefully not. The story is kinda blah, but I'll have to think of way's to make it more interesting.

Across America

Chapter 1: Hikari

"Kari! You're going to be late!"

"I know! I'm coming!" Kari shouted back. Running a brush through her brown hair, still with the same haircut from when IT had happened, except it was longer, the front parts reaching a little past her shoulders. She pinned two flower hair clips to her hair, stuck on her favorite three stars necklace, and adjusted her clothes, a white and pink spaghetti straps tank top, and khaki shorts. It was early June, and school was almost over. Today, to be exact. Running downstairs with her backpack, she picked up a bagel and her lunch, waved goodbye to Michael's parents, and ran out the door. Her carpool was there, driven by her friend Jessica's mom. 

Jessica greeted her happily. "Hey Kari! Aren't you so glad that school's going to be over soon? Me 'n Cara and Jeff and Bryan are going to the mall after school. Wanna come?"

Kari grinned at her blond friend. "I'm in! I could use the shopping break!"

Laughing, they drove off to the school. Soon enough, the sign, LEVINE RIVIERA HIGH SCHOOL flashed up, with Cara sitting above the R. Of all of Kari's friends, Jessica and Cara were the closest. Jessica and Cara had been absolute best friends. When Kari arrived in middle school, she had been sort of shy and withdrawn at first, although every boy had been drooling at the sight of her. Jessica and Cara took her in and soon they were super friends. 

"Jess! Kari! Took you long enough! Come on, let's not be late on the last day!"

Jessica was blond with hazel eyes, while Cara had auburn hair and rather strangely, gray eyes. The trio made quite an impression, and were well-liked. They chatted about all the things going on over the summer.

"Yeah, we're going to Maine for vacation. I heard that it's really pretty. We're even going to visit that lighthouse at Bass Harbor Head, you know, the one in that painting in the art gallery."

Cara was very artistic, being a great artist. 

"I wish our vacation was that exciting or pretty, at least. But we're going to Kansas! Boring old Kansas," Jessica mumbled.

Kari looked amused. "Why would you go to Kansas? Relatives?"

Jessica nodded miserably, putting on a face that made all three laugh. "Say Kari, weren't you going back to Japan for a little while?"

"Yeah, in a week. It'll be nice to see my parents and friends again."

* * *

The last day of school was a shortened day, so it was only noon when the kids piled into their homerooms. Kari, Jessica, and Cara had the same homeroom. Their teacher, a fun but strict woman named Mrs. Lee, called for attention, then waited as the kids sat down and fidgeted impatiently. Kari waited for her name to be called.

"Bryan Banders."

"Jessica Eleffley."

And finally, "Kari Kamiya."

And a while later, "Cara Wilkinson."

Cara was the last one to be called, so they left after that. 

"Yo!" 

Jessica turned at the voice. "Jeff!" she exclaimed. "How did you do?"

Cara rolled her eyes as Jessica threw herself in Jeff's arms. Jessica and Jeff had been together since eighth grade graduation, and they had a great relationship, but sometimes they were so _sugary_. 

"Come on, let's go you guys!" 

The mall was located on a pleasant wide street known simply as Main Street. Main Street Mall was really restaurants and cafes and shops along the street, but it was known as the mall for obvious reasons. The group sat down at a table outside of a restaurant called Bel Forno, with a nice little green umbrella above the table. They ordered and started chatting. 

"I have to stay in Kansas for three whole weeks! I'm gonna be bored out of my life!" moaned Jessica. "What can you possibly do in cornfields?"

"Aw, Jess, it can't be that bad," said Bryan. "You'll get to be with your, um, cousins, right?"

Jessica sighed. "I just don't understand. All of a sudden these cousins we didn't even hear of invite us to their home in _Kansas_. I mean, you think my dad would have mentioned them before this."

"Well, at least you're leaving the state. I'm only going to New York City," said Bryan. 

"At least you're going somewhere," snorted Jeff. "I get to stay here the entire summer and take classes, just because I got one lousy C on my report card. And it was a C+!"

"Oh yeah, we never shared our grades. Well, spill!" demanded Cara. "I got As and Bs. What about you, Kari?"

Kari sipped at her water. "Straight As, again."

"Straight As, _again_," sighed her redhead friend. "How do you do it, Kari?"

She shrugged. "Just study, and work hard. That's all it takes."

The other four shook their heads. Sometimes, Kari was just too perfect. Bryan got a mischievous glance in his eye. "You sure you won't go out with me, Kari? Just once?"

Kari shook her head. "I'm sorry, Bryan. I…I…have someone else."

Usually it was so easy to shrug it off, but all of a sudden everything crashed down on her again. Tears filled her eyes and she leaned back. Jessica and Cara shot accusatory glances at Bryan, who simply looked surprised. They were used to Kari, who sometimes just looked so depressed and sad and unresponsive, and learned to accept her mood swings. 

Jessica cleared her throat. "So, Kari, I heard your cute brother Michael's coming back from NYU tomorrow!"

Kari couldn't help but smile weakly. "Jess, you know Michael isn't my brother! And you have Jeff!"

"Yeah," complained Jeff. "Aren't I cuter than him?" he said in a plaintive voice, which set everyone to laughing. Kari smiled. Her friends could always cheer her up, no matter what.

"Number 58!"

"Oh, that's us!" exclaimed Bryan. "I'm starving!"

A few minutes later, Kari bit into a warm turkey & swiss sandwich on wheat. "Mmmm, I love this restaurant! Their food is always so good," she commented. "Not really relating to any specific culture. Just nice and American."

Jeff paused for a second in his sandwich, which was already half gone. "Hey, Kari, Jess told me that you're going back to Japan for two weeks. Can you get me something?"

"Sure, but actually…I think I might stay for three weeks. I haven't exactly bought my return plane ticket yet anyway. Um…what do you want me to get for you?"

Jeff grinned, then pulled out a list that was about four pages long. The other four sweatdropped as he started reading. Jessica cut him off, skimmed the list, and said, "Basically, he wants food and anime stuff. But I'd advise on not buying more than a couple things, and we can share them, right?" she smiled sweetly.

* * *

"Michael!" screamed Kari, and hugged him tightly as he stepped out of his car. It was the next day, and Michael had come back from NYU.

"Yo, Hikari-chan, nice to see you again," he said in perfect Japanese.

Kari made a face. "You don't have to speak in Japanese to me, you know that, Michael-san," she replied, also in Japanese.

"So, what's up? Ready to go back? Oh, Mom told me you and friends tore up the mall yesterday. Apparently you bought half of it."

Kari stuck out her tongue. "Yeah, very funny. Wanna see what I got?" and without waiting for a reply, dragged him upstairs. "Get your luggage later!"

She opened the door to her room. Her room was bright and sunny, with a small wooden desk, a pretty lamp, and supplies. The wallpaper was a soft and pale yellow, with slightly raised silhouettes of flowers and small butterflies. A bookcase stood next to the desk, completely filled with books, English and Japanese, workbooks, and lots of photo albums. There was a closet and a nightstand. Large windows with pale yellow drapes stood next to her bed. The bedspread was pale pink, and looking like the designs on a kimono. Her room wasn't very large, but there was plenty of room to move and sit on the soft cream carpet. Michael was always a little taken aback when he saw Kari's room. It was so pretty! And 'pretty' was not a word Michael used often. Kari walked to her closet and pulled out:

A sky blue halter top

A baby blue skirt that reached above her knees

Khaki capris

A baby pink t-shirt that read, "Angel" in sparkly cursive

2 pairs of hair clips

At first Kari had been embarrassed and refused to use Michael's family's money, but they had been completely overjoyed to take her in, having always wanted a son and a daughter, so Kari had become just another member of the family. 

"Nice stuff, Kari. Gonna wear it next week?"

She nodded, eyes momentarily sparkling with emotion, but it was pushed aside. "It'll be nice to see my family again," she repeated.

Michael gave her a worried glance. "Kari, don't push yourself. If you need to, stay in Japan. Don't wait your whole life for your brother and friends to show up, because they might not. The greater chance is that they won't. I'm not trying to be a downer, but that day was pretty bad. The things that were said weren't very pretty. No one can recover from verbal wounds."

Kari sighed impatiently. "But Michael, I don't know what happened that day. I can barely remember stuff from four years ago! I just…" she said quietly. "I just want everything to go back being the way it was. Not that I haven't been happy," she added hastily. "But, it's not quite the same. I want my Oniichan. I want Takeru-kun. Why did they leave me?" and with that she crumbled into tears on the ground.

Michael quickly bent down and hugged her tightly. "Kari, I'm sorry for bringing that up. I just don't want you to waste your life waiting for someone who might not show up. Please understand…"

* * *

"Bye Kari! Have fun!" called Michael's Mom, Sara. Kari waved back and got into the flight terminal of an airplane bound for the Odaiba Airport. It was all planned out. After visiting in Japan for two weeks, she would leave by the Digiport, saying that she was leaving by airplane. She would call after a little while so no one would suspect her of being in danger. Her parents in Japan would think she would be back in Kingston, while her family in America would think she was still in Japan. It was perfect! Now she could spend time with Tailmon and the others.

* * *

"Okaasan!" Kari called joyously. She ran and threw herself in her mother's arms, then hugged her father. After a long and boring flight, she was finally back in Odaiba. Kari felt twinges of guilt as she saw her parents crying hard with joy and relief that their little girl was safe. "'Kaasan, 'Tousan, I'm so sorry. I'll try to come home real soon. I'm sorry I still haven't found Oniichan and the others," she said and dropped her eyes.

"Hikari, we don't mind. It's not your fault. We're just glad…that you're with us," her mother said with a trembling smile. "Come on, let's go home."

Hikari felt another twinge. "Okaasan, I'm not staying, you know. I have to go back."

"Of course. We understand," she said quietly. "But you know what I think."

Hikari and her mother had had several arguments over the past four years, mostly dealing with living in America. But she had been adamant in staying in Kingston. For a moment Michael's words flashed in the girl's mind, but she shrugged it aside. "I can't wait to see all of the other parents too," she said. "Didn't Yamato-san and Takeru-kun's parents get remarried?"

Hikari's father nodded. "Like we said, they started spending more time with each other after they…left. They just got married two months ago though. They'll be real happy to see you again."

Hikari sighed wistfully. There was just so much she was missing! Of course, her family missed lots of stuff in her life as well, but she had always been betting with Takeru on the day his parents got married again. Grabbing a bag from her luggage, she and her family walked off.

The air was bright and crisp as she strolled through the streets of Odaiba. Visiting familiar places, talking with old friends, buying stuff for her friends, it was all good. Hikari stretched her arms and smiled brightly. "Like sunshine on a beautiful new morning," Taichi had once said, and then Sora would tease him for being poetic. Memories flitted through her head like elusive butterflies, dancing and swirling. Hikari's expression froze on her face. Here she was daydreaming again. Daydreaming about something that would never be again. 

"Excuse me, do you have the-" the speaker gasped and stepped back. "Time," she finished weakly. Hikari stared, totally confused. The speaker was a girl, about 20 or so, with decidedly pointy red hair. "Hikari? Are you Yagami Hikari?"

Slowly the girl's picture processed in a memory of four years ago. Hikari gasped. "Motomiya…Jun?"

* * *

After getting some shaved ice, the two girls sat down at a park bench. Hikari couldn't help but stare at Jun. Her hair now pointed down instead of up, but it was still rather spikey. She seemed more mature, not all hyper and genki like before. 

Abruptly, Jun turned, "So, Hikari-san, how is everything?"

"They're all right. How about you? I've never heard from you for a long time."

Jun sighed. "Things are real different. Have you heard from Daisuke at all?"

"No, not a word. Gomen. I really want to find them all. I assume you heard the story, right?"

"I just don't understand. Nothing's been the same. Believe it or not, I miss that little gaki," Jun said with wry affection, but her eyes were sad.

Hikari could only wonder. The last time she saw Jun Motomiya, she had been a big pest, and she and Daisuke hadn't gotten along at all. Now, she was…different. How many lives have changed because of our foolishness? She wondered. Her eyes filled with tears for a second, but she brushed them aside and stood up determinedly. "Jun-san, I'll find them. I was stupid before, just sitting in Kingston thinking about finding the other kids someday, but you know what? I never really did try, did I? I've been such an idiot! I've wasted so much time!" she sobbed.

Jun blinked, taken aback. "Um, here," she said, wrapping Hikari in a comforting embrace.

Hikari looked up after a few minutes. "Gomen nasai, Jun-san. I've been a real watering pot lately. Would you like to come to dinner at my-" she caught herself, "My parent's apartment?"

Jun grinned. "Let's invite all the families!"

Hikari shook her head sadly. "Jun-san, I've seen the way you look at me. The only child that bothers to keep in touch, the only child that they know is alive. It's torture for them. But I'd like it if you could come."

The other girl nodded. "Of course."

* * *

Hikari couldn't sleep that night. Dinner had been great, naturally, but the earlier conversation with Jun was bothering her. She really hadn't tried to find her friends, despite everything she said, nor had she really found out how the other families were coping with their loss. That'll change. They won't have to worry after I find them all. And I will find them, even if I have to spend the rest of my life doing it. Michael's words again flashed through her mind, but she thought, Michael, thank you for worrying about me, but this is what I want. I understand now.

* * *

"I'll see you again sometime real soon! Bye bye!" Hikari shouted in the crowd at the airport. When her family asked if she had bought a ticket, she had lied and said yes, feeling guilty, but knowing that she needed this. She had asked Jun to call her parents over to do something else before the plane loaded. Feeling sneaky, she crept into the Ladie's Room, and opened her laptop. "Digital Gate, open!" she commanded. A bright white light flared up and sucked up the girl and her digivice, while an elderly lady in another stall started at the sudden light.

"Tailmon? Tailmon, are you there?" Hikari called. She had used the digivice to lock on to her partner's position, but where was she? "Tailmon!"

"Hi-kari?" 

A sleek white cat bounded from a nearby field of flowers. Hikari saw Patamon floating in midair, looking confused. "Hikari?"

The girl and her digimon hugged each other tightly. They didn't see each other very much, so each time was a treasured time. "How long are you staying? The others will be so glad to see you!"

Patamon flapped up, hope shining in his eyes. Hikari shook her head. "Gomen nasai, Patamon. I still haven't found Takeru-kun, but I promise I will soon."

The little digimon deflated. None of the other Chosen Children had entered the Digital World since four years ago, all the digimon swore. Hikari had thought that they might visit their digimon, but maybe they were still hurting, afraid to see each other. Putting on her trademark sunshine smile, she said brightly, "Come on! I want to see the others too! I'm staying for a week, hopefully the gate will be open for America by then. Oh, tomorrow I have to e-mail my parents. I'll need Tentomon's technical knowledge for that."

Tailmon and Patamon led her to a pleasant forest clearing where the rest of the 10 digimon were. All were startled when she entered. They immediately bombarded her with questions, but each time she had to shake her head, watching sadly as they wilted.

ONE WEEK LATER

"Ne, Hikari?"

"Nani, Tailmon?"

"Do you want me to come back with you?"

"How come?"

"Maybe you need some help finding the other children?"

"That's very thoughtful of you, but I think that it would be best for the digimon to stay out of this. Please understand."

Tailmon smiled crookedly. The two were lying in a field of swaying wildflowers. Hikari was going home tomorrow, as the gate would be open. "You know that if you need any help, or just someone to talk to, count on me."

Hikari smiled. "I love you, Tailmon."

"Me too."

The next day, it was time for Hikari to say yet another goodbye. This was a very regretful goodbye, for the digimon couldn't help in the search for their partners. For a moment, Hikari wished to stay just one more day, but she stepped through the gate…

…and landed from Michael's laptop. "Michael, I'm ba—"

She stopped and gaped, for Michael was not alone in his room. Cara and Jessica were there, and standing with them was Ishida Yamato and Hida Iori.


	3. Cara and Yamato

Intro: Um…maybe this chapter's a little confusing, since it doesn't answer the last chapter, but don't worry, it's supposed to be this way. I have no idea if you have to hike through woods to get to Bass Harbor Head, but it looks like there's a forest next to it in the painting.

Across America

Chapter 2: Cara & Yamato

"Wow, this place is more gorgeous than in the pictures!"

Mira Wilkinson smiled at her enraptured daughter. "I knew you'd like it, honey. Planning to paint some pictures for me?"

Cara grinned. "Sure, Mom. I can't wait to see the lighthouse. I heard the view is breathtaking."

After driving to Maine for two days, and being there for three days, they were finally going up to Bass Harbor Head. At the moment, they were hiking through the woods to get there. The air was refreshing and cold, and it was pretty cold anyhow, for summer. But the sun was shining, and the scenery was wondrous. Every once in awhile, Cara would stop and snap a picture. Her parents didn't mind, they loved beautiful things as much as their daughter did. Cara was an only child, but she was all right with that. Her flaming, wavy hair and contrasting velvet gray eyes gave her a mysterious look, not knocking you out with good looks, but they were obviously there. Despite her artistic background, Cara was the fastest sprinter in the whole 10th grade. She painted and drew with great skill, and had good grades, with more As than Bs. Today she was dressed in comfortable shorts, a plain green t-shirt, with a light jacket over it in black. As she walked along the trail, she wondered how Jessica and Kari were doing, as well as Bryan and Jeff. She imagined Kari was sharing time with her family, Bryan would be walking around New York City, Jeff would be slaving in summer school, and Jess…Jess would be scowling where ever she was in Kansas, maybe sitting on a haystack. Just the thought made her giggle uncontrollably, earning her strange glances from her parents. Still, maybe the haystack wasn't too accurate. After all, she didn't know what Kansas was like, so it was unfair of her to make judgments. I'll paint pictures for them, she thought. Haha, they don't know what they're missing. This place is great!

* * *

"Honey, if your eyes get any wider, they'll pop out of your head!" declared her father. 

Cara gaped at the sight before her. The cliff overlooked the rolling blue sea, the waves crashing with white foam. The magnificent lighthouse stood nearby like a lone guardian. "Kirei," she whispered.

"What was that?" asked her mom, puzzled.

"That's Japanese for 'beautiful'" Cara explained.

"It sure is."

Cara slowly sat down and stared. Her parents exchanged glances and smiled. They put down their stuff and got out food and water, not knowing they were being watched. A lone figure stared down from the lighthouse, a figure with piercing blue eyes. 

The redhead ate mechanically, still admiring the ocean. It was just too beautiful. I want to stay here forever! Well no, I guess not forever, but at least for a couple more hours. 

In fact, it was about two hours later that her parents suggested that they look at the lighthouse. Cara had been sketching the water, the sky, the lighthouse, and the forest. She agreed, but still had to be half-dragged. Inside, Cara's heart quickened a little. The lighthouse was…spooky. The inside was dark, and the door was creaky. "Hello?" she called, waiting for the lighthouse keeper to respond. When he did, she nearly fainted. He seemed to melt out of the shadows, with glowing eyes. Not only that, but he was gorgeous! He looked about college age, muscled, with fair skin and spiky blond hair, not to mention those eyes…there was almost something familiar about him. Cara frowned. There was no way she knew this guy. Was there? 

When he spoke, his voice was deep, with a smooth feeling to it. The voice of a singer. "Welcome to the Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse. There's not a whole lot to show you in here, but you're welcome to look around. If you come at night, I'll show you how to turn on the lights!" he said with short laugh.

"Can I go see the view from the top?" Cara asked. The guy nodded and gestured toward the stairs, which were in spirals. Her parents nodded as they began to look at the ground floor, which had several paintings and an interesting setup. Cara followed the mysterious guy up the stairs, her skin tingling. There was just something about him that was vaguely familiar! Someone she had seen…"Excuse me, but have we met?" she asked.

He gave her a startled look. "I don't think so."

"What's your name? You're Japanese, aren't you?"

"Yeah. My name's Matt Ishida. And you are?"

"Cara Wilkinson. Well, maybe I don't know you."  
"Know you?"

"Yeah, I thought I've seen you somewhere. Have you ever been to New York?"

He turned away slightly, a shadow in his eyes. "Yeah, a while ago. Maybe you just happened to see me somewhere."

She followed, unconvinced. When they reached the top, they were in a room of sorts. Unorganized bags of items lay on the ground. His stuff? She wondered. "Do you live here?"

"I go to the city closest to here on weekends to work at my other part-time job. During the school year, someone else takes care of the lighthouse."  
A cot was on the ground, and next to it was a low nightstand with a lamp, a book, and a picture on it. Cara glanced at the picture frame. It was pretty, with seashells framing it. Her glance froze as her eyes fixed on the picture inside the frame. "No way.." she whispered.

* * *

"Kari, your room is so pretty! I love it!" Jessica exclaimed.

She smiled. "We're getting some more furniture, but this is my room!"

For the first time ever, Jessica and Cara had come to Kari's home in the eighth grade. (She arrived during the summer before) Like her brother Michael, the two were enchanted with her room. Cara wandered over to Kari's neat desk, with the pretty lamp and paper, pens, and some books. There was also a picture in a plain wooden picture frame. It was a fairly large picture, filled with a bunch of people, Kari included. They appeared to be holding some stuffed animals. "Hey Kari, who are these people?"

Kari's smile faded a little, and her eyes seemed very sad. "Those are some friends of mine."

Jessica came to look too. "Wow, look at the cute guys!" 

Cara rolled her eyes. "You're so boy-crazy, Jess! Although they are cute," she added.

"Especially him! Look at those eyes! And look at that boy's cute hair! Hey, he looks like the really cute one!"

Cara looked closer at the boy in question. He was Kari's age, with blond hair and blue eyes. Standing next to him was a boy that could have been his brother, with the same looks, but with angular eyes, which seemed to pierce out at you. Kari was standing on the other side of the younger kid, and next to her was the kid with big hair. Kari was hanging on to him, whoever he was. "That your boyfriend, Kari?"

Kari looked shocked. "Cara, that's my brother!"

"Oh. Well what about the blond kid then?"

She looked uncomfortable. "Well…he…we…sort of…we both cared for each other. But we never got a chance to get together."

"He's…okay, right?"

Kari's eyes suddenly filled. "I don't know! I haven't seen him in months!"

Jessica nudged Cara. "Be careful! You know her past is a touchy subject."

"I'm so sorry, Kari. I hope you guys see each other again sometime."

* * *

The blood drained from her face. He was…the older blond one, but he looked a little different. 

"Um, are you okay?"

His voice snapped her back to reality. Laughing nervously, she moved to the window, but she was trembling a little. He watched her critically. She had been looking at that picture, of him and the other children. Perhaps she did know one of them. From New York, did she say? Everyone had a copy of that picture, maybe, just maybe. "Excuse me, but do you recognize that picture?"

She jerked a little. "Hahaha, this view is great, isn't it?"

Matt's eyes swirled. "Why are you avoiding the question? Answer me!"

Cara spun around, anger flaring inside of her. "Why should I? You're a bad person! You're one of the people that makes Kari cry!" She turned and ran down the stairs, then out of the lighthouse. 

Matt watched her run into the woods, her parents calling after her. Kari…Hikari-chan. Yes, that girl must know her from a picture, or maybe from Hikari's description. So Hikari had stayed in New York after all. Matt slowly sat down, shock fading from his system. It had been four years now, that he and the others left. What did she look like? Matt had left and traveled north to Maine, found a job and enrolled in the high school, with a fake story and a new first name, because Yamato would sound funny in America. He worked hard to earn a full scholarship, and payed for the rest with the money in his bank account and his part-time job. He had heard that the lighthouse needed a keeper, so he took care of it in the summer as a job. It was lonely, but that was all right because Matt was used to being lonely, from seven years ago. Did Hikari-chan cry about our leaving? It was so abrupt, after all. She still cries for us, lost and scattered across the country. Matt stood up and walked to one of his bags. Opening it, he pulled out a picture book and flipped to the full page picture of his love, Tachikawa Mimi. His eyes softened at the sight of her, her beauty, her pink hair, her soft brown eyes. Next to it was the picture they had taken seven years ago, when they had to leave the Digital World. Oh Gabumon, what would you say if you saw us today? Gomen nasai.

* * *

Cara had been so mad, she'd stomped off into the woods. Her parents were totally confused about her sudden departure from the spot she'd been rooted to for hours. They were staying in a cabin about a mile away from the cliff. The cabin was located inside the forest, so Cara walked in that direction. How could he? How could he just sit in a lighthouse all summer, go to school during the school year, and never write or call or e-mail Kari, who obviously was good friends with him? Well, as Kari's best friend, she could do her this duty and straighten up that guy. Tomorrow, then. She only had three more days here, and for a day her family was going on a boat in the harbor. Anyways, she would have to go back to the lighthouse to paint. 

Cara seated herself comfortably on a rock on the cliff. The sun from yesterday was gone, replaced by dark blue swirling clouds, and a chill breeze. Brushing away a lock of red hair from her eyes, she got out paintbrushes, watercolors, and thick tagboard. Cara was famous at Riviera for her watercolor paintings. She seemed to know exactly what tint, the amount of water, and the right strokes for watercolor painting. Humming, she wet her brush and swiped it in the dark blue. She had only worked for 10 minutes when she heard him come out. 

He sat down next to her, with a BLUES HARP harmonica in his hand. Putting his mouth, he blew out a few bars. Then he wove into a depressing blues song. Cara's breath caught in her throat. It seemed like the world had gone silent around them. The waves could be seen in all their glory, but not heard. The wind swirled around them, like answering a call. Hair flying, she turned with eyes wide to this summoner of magic. His eyes were shut, and he was swaying slightly with the wind. The echoing notes flowed around the area, and Cara shivered as the air grew ice cold. For a moment, she could have sworn that the young man was glowing blue, but the song came to an end, and so did the magic. Shaking slightly, she asked in a trembling voice, "Who are you?"

He seemed surprised by the question. "Like I said, I'm Matt Ishida. And you're Cara Wilkinson. I came to apologize for yesterday. I hope I wasn't rude."

Breathing hard, the world swam around her. Matt caught her before she tipped over completely. She steadied herself and shook off the effects of the song. "No, no, that's okay. But I do have a request."

"I think I know what you're asking. And I say yes. I'll come back to New York and see Kari. That is what you want, right?"

Cara nodded. "My family can take you. There's enough room in our rental car. I can explain to my parents that you're a friend of Kari's. They'll understand."

He laughed, a rich sound. "Thanks. I haven't laughed in a while. It felt good, and I don't even know you."

She blushed a little. "Um, you're welcome. By the way, you're a great harmonica player."

"And you're a great painter," he said as he gestured to her painting of the waves and sky. 

Cara relaxed a little, feeling tense around this amazingly cute blond. "You like it? I like to paint. Everyone says it's always great, but I get better all the time. It's the same for drawing. When I look back at a few months ago's drawings, they look horrible. People can be so weird!"

His blue eyes laughed even as he replied seriously, "You're right more than you'll ever know, I think."

Cara looked up at his cryptic answer. She felt uncomfortable again. "Um, so…how do you know Kari anyway? Friends of her brother?"

"I guess you could say that. Her brother and I didn't become good friends until after a while."

"You didn't answer the question."

"I know."

"All right, then, who is everyone else in the picture? Kari wouldn't tell us."

Matt looked as uncomfortable as Kari, so Cara, frustrated, dropped the subject. "Well then, do you want to come with my family and I on a trip to McKinley National Park? Or just meet up with us later? We're leaving in five days."

"Meeting up sounds good. I'll have to go down into the city and have someone else take care of the lighthouse while I'm gone, among other arrangements."

Cara gave him a thoughtful glance. She was glad she wasn't Jess, while with a boyfriend, she would be drooling over this guy. Not that she was boy-crazy all the time. "Why don't you stay in New York? Or go back and visit whoever in Japan like Kari does."

Matt sighed and looked down. "It's not that easy." He shifted a little. "Do you know why Kari and I are here in America in the first place?" When she shook her head, he went on, "We were just visiting a friend, but things…went badly. We split up, and stayed here."

"But what went badly? What happened?"

He turned away, the shadow back in his eyes. "Not even Kari knows. Why should you know?"

"Because I care! Find those people and straighten them out!"

"I thought you were Kari's best friend. Surely you see that she never kept in touch with us, simply because she doesn't know where everyone is. Why would I know? Anyhow, it would be wrong for you to know when Kari doesn't." He laughed sadly. "Sweet, caring Kari. Has she changed?"

"Not a bit!" snapped Cara. "She's very sweet and caring, even though her boyfriend deserted her."

Now Matt's eyes flashed. "Don't you dare say that about Takeru! He had his own reasons for leaving his loved one, same as me!"

"Self-guilt, is it? So who did you leave behind?"

He sighed again. "The girl I love. And still do. Her name's Mimi Tachikawa, unless she changed it, like me." Looking her square in the eyes, he said abruptly, "Let's change the subject."

"Fine with me," and she went back to painting.

* * *

Her parents had been understanding about the situation, as Cara had anticipated. After leaving Matt in the city, Cara and her parents had driven to the national park and had a great time there for three days. Cara felt excited. Kari would be so happy to see an old friend! This was perfect! Naturally, the days dragged by before they went back to pick up Matt and leave for New York. Of course, Kari and Jess wouldn't be there when she got back, but it would only be a week anyhow. The days whirled by as Cara and Matt walked around Kingston, having fun in the sun. Michael had been so surprised to see them. "Ishida Yamato?" It was almost funny. Some days they hung out together with Jeff as well. He'd received a letter from Jessica, who wasn't as bored as she thought she would be. There was a message for Cara as well, but it only said, "You'll never believe who I met in Kansas!" which, of course, became clear as she came back, bearing a twelve year-old kid with green eyes with her. Both Matt and Michael almost fainted this time, and Cara recognized him as "another picture kid." "Kind of a coincidence, isn't it?" Michael remarked. "Nice to meet you, Cody," Cara said.

Kari was a couple days late, and they were all talking in Michael's room when she popped out of the computer. If that wasn't shock enough for Cara and Jessica. Cara had been expecting Kari to be crying, with joy this time, maybe, but she looked like she was about to faint. The blood completely disappeared from her face, and she sat down hard. 

The redhead grinned uncertainly. "Um, Kari, hi! I think we met some old friend's of yours. Matt and Cody, right?"

That was, of course, when Kari actually fainted. Michael quickly laid her on the bed and put a cold cloth to her forehead. After a few minutes, she came around, with Matt and Cody around anxiously. After she sat up, Matt hugged her, speaking in Japanese. "Hikari-chan, gomen nasai!"

Cody also hugged her. Kari looked confused. "Yamato-san? Iori-kun?"

"Hey, let's talk in English, now!" demanded Jessica. "Aren't you guys happy to see each other?"

"Well, it is a big shock."

"True."

Kari felt dizzy as she looked around. They weren't fake, they were actually here! "Yamato, Iori, have you seen any of the other kids?" She was disappointed as they shook their heads. "But how did you get here? Did you come back?"

Matt grinned. "Your friends met each of us on their vacations, and I guess we came back with them. I'm glad."

Kari smiled weakly. "I'm glad too. But, tell me what's been happening!"

Cara related her tale, and she gave Matt a high five. "Now it's your turn, Jess!"


	4. Jessica and Iori

Across America

Intro: I did some research on Kansas for this story over Spring Break, and then realized how stupid I was being. Why was I doing research on something I really didn't need to instead of my actual schoolwork which I did need research for? But even so, I don't really know much about Kansas, so my information is probably only fairly accurate. 

Across America

Chapter 3: Jessica and Iori

"Jess, honey, please stop complaining!"

"Yeah, Jess, honey, please stop complaining!"

"Shut up, Ryan!" 

Jessica Eleffley sat in a comfortable seat on a large airplane bound for Great Bend, Kansas. A few miles out of Great Bend was the home of Ralph Eleffley, Jessica's previously unknown uncle. She had been told that he had three sons, Jackson, Jered, and Sam, a daughter named Korinn, and an adopted son called Cody. Why me? She thought to herself. She could be back in Kingston with Jeff, just the two of them, but noooooooo, she had to be dragged on this trip to the wilds. She sighed and looked forlorn. 

Her father watched her, then chuckled. "Jess, it won't be that bad. It's only for three weeks after all. You'll see your friends again soon."

Jessica made a face. Her father always knew what she was thinking. "Yeah, whatever."

"Ralph is real nice, a regular brick. Just because he lives on a farm doesn't mean anything."

"Really? Then why didn't I know about Uncle Ralph until two weeks ago?"

Her father shook his head. "Ralph and I…have had our differences in the past. Anyhow, I doubt that his kids knew any more about me than you knew about Ralph. So don't feel left out."

Jessica's ten-year-old brother Ryan turned his dark blond head around from his seat in front of Jessica and their dad. "Dad, won't we be bored though?"

"Well…Sam is 10 as well, and Cody and Korinn are 12. You can hang out with them. If you want, Jess, you can hang out with the older boys. Jack is 17 and Jer is 14."

"Yeah, great, sure."

Her dad sighed. "I wish you'd lighten up about this trip, Jess. I know it was unexpected," he paused slightly. "But we've patched things up and Ralph and I used to be very close. I'd like to see him again, and it's a good chance to meet your cousins. Please cheer up. For me?" He made a puppy dog face.

Jessica smiled, then giggled. "Dad, you're so silly. But I will try."

* * *

After arriving in Great Bend, they were met by Jessica's cousins and aunt and uncle. She was pleasantly surprised to find that Uncle Ralph looked just like her father, with dark blond hair and kind-looking hazel eyes. She was less pleasantly surprised to find that Aunt Carolyn looked a lot like her own mother, with golden hair and pale blue eyes. When she commented on that, her mother laughed and said, "Good observation, Jess! The truth is, Carolyn and I are cousins," causing Jess to gape at her. "Heh…heh…heh…"

Jackson and Jered took after their mother, while Korinn took after their father. Sam had his father's looks, but his mother's eyes. Cody had dark brown hair, and curiously green eyes. Unlike the others, he was…Japanese? Then she remembered that her dad had said that Cody was adopted. She introduced to them one at a time. As she said 'hi' to Cody, however, something flashed in the back of her mind. Something…she should remember. She brushed it aside. "Hi! I'm your cousin, Jessica."

He smiled, but there was something wistful about it. "Nice to meet you. I'm Cody."

His eyes were bright green, and that haircut…"Uhhh, heheh, I see I'm not alone in having green eyes."

Cody looked surprised. "Um, yeah."

Nervously brushing aside a stray lock of golden hair, Jessica laughed sort of crazily. There was something that she couldn't put her finger on here. But it was once again brushed away as they packed in Uncle Ralph's big truck. The drive took about 20 minutes, the view changing from city to golden fields and green plains. There were fields of yellow and pink flowers, and rabbits scampered on the ground while warblers sang in flight. Jessica had to admit that it was prettier than she expected. But it would have been nicer if they lived in East Kansas, with the large cities. She made a face. Cara would love this place for sure. 

* * *

Kari was laughing. Giggling, even. That was good. She didn't even smile a whole lot, but when she did, her whole face lit up like a quick sunrise. "What's so funny?" demanded Jessica. She and Cara had been in a heated debate about the fact that Cara wasn't interested in a guy that liked her. 

Kari smiled. It was just like old times, three years ago after they got back from the Digital World. "You two remind me of two of my old best friends, Sora and Mimi. They had this same argument once."

The other two girls leaned towards Kari slightly. This was the first time she had willingly spoken about her past. "Really?"

"Well, you guys aren't quite as different as they were, but still best friends with some definitely different tastes."

Cara leaned back. "We're not all that different. Jess here is just stubborn about some things, that's all."

Jess shot her a dirty look. "Not as stubborn as Cara here. Anyway, what were your old friends like?"

Kari's face grew thoughtful. "Sora was a tomboy, and she liked being outdoors. It didn't matter where, just not cramped in some building. Mimi was the pink-loving girly girl, and she'd much rather be inside a city than the countryside. They weren't so different, really, but different enough."

"Well, as they say, opposites attract!" laughed Cara.

* * *

The farm was not very large. There was a fair-sized house and a large barn half-filled with cattle, pigs, and dogs and cats that wandered around. There were a few fields of golden wheat forming a semicircle from their house about 100 yards away, and beyond that were dry fields and shortgrass prairie. As they drove in, several of the dogs broke out of the barn to greet the truck and its passengers. Jessica's dad laughed. "I see you've still got the hounds, eh?"

"Wouldn't give 'em up for the world!" Ralph replied with a grin.

The two leaped out of the truck with a holler and started to pet and talk to the 'hounds'. Aunt Carolyn laughed. "Come on, Ralph, we've got to help them get unloaded before you go off with your precious dogs!"

"My, are they still such little boys, Carol?" asked Jessica's mom.

"Did you really think they'd grow up, Sara?"

Jess giggled at the adults. "You guys are even younger than us kids!"

Cody and Korinn were laughing together as they ran up to pet the dogs. Jessica frowned slightly. Now, there was still that weird feeling about Cody to figure out. 

After they were unpacked in the two guest rooms (Jess had to share with her brother), she asked to be excused. "I'm just going to look around the fields, you know?"

It was early afternoon, and the sun felt great. The temperature was only in the 80's, which was perfect. Jess wandered through the wheat field, golden hair mingling with golden stalks. Her destination was the flower field further out. Western and Central Kansas favored shortgrass, but here was some longrass. She winced as a snake slithered by, and ran the rest of the way to the field. The yellow grass was spangled with asters and goldenrod. She dashed around in them for a little bit, enjoying the refreshing smell. There was an inviting rock right in the middle. Involuntarily, Jess yawned, remembering that she had gotten up very early this morning to go on the plane. "Just a short nap won't hurt." She settled down behind the rock where there was a clear space without flowers, only soft grass. A hawk spiraled lazily in the sky, a speck of darkness against the blue. Around and around, slowly and slowly…Her eyes shut.

* * *

The sun was setting when she awoke. Different colors mixed and weaved through the darkening sky. Oh no! She had been asleep for hours, and maybe her family was worried. She froze as she heard sounds behind her. Carefully she peered around the other side of the rock. It was Cody. He was…doing something with a wooden stick. Practicing…kendo, she thought, remembering something Kari had mentioned about it. She sat up and yawned. It was okay, it was just Cody. Jess stood up, rather wobbly. "Hey Cody!"

Cody nearly dropped his kendo stick. Startled, he turned to face her. "Oh. Hi Jessica."

"You can call me Jess," she said brightly. "So, what 'cha doing? Practicing kendo?"

"You know about kendo?"

"Well, sort of. One of my best friends is from Japan, and she told me a little about it."

"Oh? What's her name?"

"Kari. Kari Kamiya. You know her?"

Cody paused. Kari. Could it be? "You're from New York, right?"

"Yeah." Jess watched his unreadable expression. He seemed very mature for a twelve-year-old. 

There was an uncomfortable silence. "Um, it's about dinner time. We should go back."

"Oh. Yeah."

More silence as they walked around. "Hey Jess?" said Cody. "I never even saw you behind that rock! Were you there from the time you left?"

Jess smiled. The ice is broken, she thought. "I fell asleep. Silly, huh?" As they passed through the wheat field, she asked, "Are the snakes around here poisonous?"

Cody smiled, sort of shyly. "Some of them. Just be careful where you step."

As they entered the house, they were chatting like old friends. Dinner that night was fried chicken and mashed potatoes, with fresh bread. "After all, we do grow a wheat farm. Might as well make some bread, right?" Aunt Carol had said. After dinner they were going to buy a couple kittens for catching mice and rats, and Ralph had promised one to Jess's family. There were a couple of other things to buy there, so Jessica took along her bag with a wallet. "I'll get Cody," she volunteered. Cody had disappeared into his room that he shared with Korinn. "Cody, we're gonna go to the Roadson's Farm now! Oh, there you are!" she said as she entered the room. 

Cody looked up. He had been staring at a photograph. Jess gasped as she viewed the photograph. She knew it well. She saw it every time she went in Kari's room. It was a picture filled with people holding stuffed animals, Kari included. There she was, hanging on to her brother. Next to her, that was her boyfriend. And yes, there was Cody, standing near him. This was where the feeling came from. He was younger, obviously, but with the same haircut as now, and the same green eyes. He was holding a little yellow head, looking very happy. Slowly, Jess dragged her eyes from the Cody in the picture to the Cody sitting on the bed. "C-Cody, you…"

The young boy smiled sadly. "I guess you do recognize someone in the picture, am I right?"

Jess nodded, shocked. "But how…?"

"This picture was taken four years ago. You know Hikari right? Kari?"

"Yeah," she mumbled, then remembered something. She dug into her wallet. "Here. This is Kari." The picture was just the one taken for Spring Pictures, with Kari smiling sweetly. 

"Cody? Jessica?" a voice called softly. Jess and Cody stopped staring at the pictures and turned to the face at the doorway. It was Korinn.

"We'll talk about this later, okay?" asked Jess, then quickly stuck the picture back in her wallet. She left quickly, with only a, "Call me Jess," to Korinn.

Korinn walked over to Cody and saw the picture. "What's going on, Cody? Everybody's waiting for us. Is…she involved with that picture?" she asked hesitantly. "I know you're sad about it." 

Cody nodded slowly. "Yeah. Our cousin Jess knows someone in the picture." He got up and put the picture on the nightstand by his bed. "You're right, everyone's waiting. Let's go, Korinn." The two quietly exited the room.

* * *

"Oohhh, they're so cute!" squealed Jess. She held a little yellow kitten in her hand.

"They're not that cute," said Ryan. The kitten in his hand bit him. "Ow!"

A small drop of blood welled from his hand. "Let's get that one, since it bit Ryan!" Jess announced.

Ryan scowled. "That's not funny, sis. I don't want a kitten that bites!"

"Okay, okay," she said. "Sorry, it was just a joke. I wasn't serious." On impulse, she hugged her little brother. Ryan turned completely red. 

"Well…if you do want to get it, we can," he said, embarrassed.

"Nah, this one's cuter!"

Korinn watched them stroke and examine the kittens. Her two cousins seemed like the type to argue a lot, but cared a lot about each other. Her dark blond head swiveled at the sound of Cody's voice behind her. He was pointing out a pretty windchime, wondering if she wanted to get it. Her dark hazel eyes softened noticeably. Nearby, Sam shook his head in disgust. It was _way_ too obvious to tell how those two felt about each other. And only at the age of 12, at that! Sam was only 10, but he wasn't stupid. They had only started out as good friends, because they had similar personalities. Quiet, intelligent, and serious. He and Korinn had been sort of, loners, before Cody came. He and Korinn got along well enough, but weren't close, like Jack and Jer. Cody's arrival changed all that. The three had fun together, but Sam couldn't bear being with the two of them for too long. If there was anyone in the family he was close to, it was his mother. The youngest member of the Eleffley family had to admit that being aloof was his own fault. Of course, Cody and Korinn were like that too. Sam would always remember the day that Cody came.

* * *

It was a bright, beautiful sunny summer day. Everything was a beautiful golden color, from the wheat fields to the flower fields. Sam and Korinn were playing in a field far away from the farm. They were allowed to go far off, since there wasn't much out there anyhow. They were both very little, and not even the tips of their heads showed above the tall grass. They weren't doing much, just looking for bugs, barely rustling the grass. They hadn't even heard him coming. Any grass moving was either dismissed as each other or the breeze. All of a sudden, a small, dark-haired boy ran smack into Sam.

"Ow!" the blond boy yelled. "Who are you?"

The other boy wasn't much older than him, about Korinn's age, probably. He had dark brown hair and very green eyes. They widened slightly. "Ahhh…sorry," he replied nervously in accented English.

Korinn appeared next to Sam. She looked curiously at the other boy. "Hey, what's your name? You want to play with us?"

He looked uncertain. "Ah, Hida Iori desu. Ah, no, my name is Iori," he stuttered. "I can't speak English very well."

"That's okay!" declared Sam loudly. "But then where are you from?"

"Japan. Where is this?"

"Well, it doesn't actually have a name, but Sam and I call it Big Bug Meadow!" Korinn giggled. "And we're in Kansas."

Iori looked confused. "Um, what?"

"Hey, what's the big bag for, anyway?" the girl wondered. 

"Uh…"

"Korinn, let's take him to Mommy and Daddy! Maybe they can speak his language."

"Good idea, Sam! Come on!"

Iori followed them hesitantly, wondering if he should go with them. It had been a long trip from New York. Going on buses, trains, on foot, and even hitchhiking once, was hard. Most people were curious as to why an eight-year-old was traveling alone. The situation was made worse because Iori knew little English. It was easy to figure out how to get a ticket for a train, and the person at the foreign money exchange place had been very helpful, since different people there knew different languages, including Japanese. Michael had given them all a bunch of money before they left to cover expenses. It wasn't too big of a problem for him, considering his father was a movie star. 

Korinn and Sam's parents were very kind and let him stay for a while. When he was regretfully getting ready to leave, they asked him to stay forever! Iori did his best to help whenever he could, and put his brains to good use. In a strange way, he sort of brought the family closer together. 

* * *

Jessica and Ryan finally settled on a small white kitten with bright blue eyes. However, they couldn't come up with a name for him. Their arguing was funny, but it did sort of get on Sam's nerves. 

* * *

She couldn't sleep. Tossing and turning on her comfortable guest's bed, Jess had lain there for about two hours without rest. Her brother had thrown a pillow at her for being so noisy, but he was now sound asleep. Finally, she gave up and tiptoed to the kitchen to get something to drink. There was a kettle full of water, and she poured herself a glass. As the girl walked past the front door, she felt a draft drift into the room. The door was open. A screen door beyond that was shut. Frowning, Jess walked quietly over to shut it, but then noticed a dark figure outside. "Who's there?" 

A pair of eyes swiveled to focus on her. Jess noted with relief that they were green. "Cody, is that you? What are you doing up so late?"

The young boy sighed slightly. "Oh, Jess. I guess I could ask you the same question," he commented, amused. "Actually, probably the same reason as you. I couldn't sleep."

"Me neither," admitted the blond girl, her hair black in the darkness. "I guess it's just a restless night." She stared at Cody for a second. "Why don't we have that chat now then?"

"I guess we'll have to get around to it. So, yeah, I know your friend Kari."

"Four years ago, right? She's still really upset after all that time, you know. Why didn't you ever say anything to her?"

Cody sighed again. "It's a very complicated story."

"Well, neither of us can sleep anyway."

So Cody filled her in on the events that had happened four years ago. "There's not too much to tell, actually. There were 12 of us, and we were a very close group. I suppose that's why we were hurt so easily…But we were boys and girls, and naturally, we…developed feelings for each other. I guess it's natural though, not all of us felt the same way. The hurt ones ran off, and we tried to find them. Kari stayed back to see if anyone went back to our friend's house, which is why she's still in New York, I'd imagine. We were all feeling hurt and betrayed in some way or another, so it was easy to let hasty, angry words out. We lashed out at each other until some of us broke down in tears even, and we _really_ didn't feel like seeing each other anymore. So we split up."

Jess shook her head. "Just like that? You just picked up and left? You went from Kingston to this farm?"

"Just like that," Cody agreed.

"But why? Why didn't you ever try to contact each other again? You aren't still feeling bad are you?"

The boy laughed. "Oh you see, I was probably the only one who wasn't really hurt that day, but I felt that if our team was splitting up, I might as well leave too. As for contacting other people, let me ask you, how would I have? I didn't know where they were. For all I knew, they even went back to Japan."

"You lived in Japan? But I'm sure your parents are still there!" said Jess. "You just let them worry about you like that? I'm sure they deserved better than that!"

"Yeah…I am sorry."

"Well then, why not come back to New York to at least visit? And contact your family?"

Cody's eyes shadowed slightly. "But you see, I'm not so sure I want to leave anymore. I'm happy here with the Eleffley family. What if I visit, and never come back? What if I talk to my mom, and she wants me to go back?"

Some inner voice spoke to Jess. Something seemed to tell her that that wasn't quite it. "No. No, Cody, that's not it, is it? What's your real reason you won't go back?"

The screen opened again, causing them to jump slightly. Korinn stood there, looking curiously at them. "You guys, it's really late! I heard your voices. I hope you didn't wake anyone else up."

Something clicked in Jessica's mind. She turned to look at Cody, who looked faintly guilty. "That's it, isn't it? Korinn, what would you say if I told you that Cody was leaving the farm forever and was going back to Japan?"

The small girl's eyes widened, then dropped. "I…I…" she mumbled numbly, looking shocked and like she was about to bolt away.

"I see," said Jess. "I see. Does anyone else know? Have you two even admitted it to each other?"

Cody and Korinn looked away, blushing brightly enough so that it was visible even in the faint light. Jess gazed at them. Not bad, Jess! She congratulated herself. I should've known right away, though. 

* * *

Cody and Korinn were at first, horribly shy with each other. Sam watched them, then burst out in a fit of snickers. Slowly they returned to best friends mode, and didn't bring up the subject again. Jess didn't say anything more about returning to New York either. Although she hated to admit it, she was enjoying her stay in Kansas. The weeks went by in what seemed like a blur. Every day was something new and fun, and she became good friends with her five cousins. She helped with the wheat, taking care of the animals, and gathered armful after armful of fragrant flowers. They roamed the countryside with the white kitten, who still didn't have a name. Day and night were spent laughing and talking and roaming and having fun. "I guess I have to revise my opinion of Kansas," she admitted. "It's a lot better than I thought." When she e-mailed Jeff, she mentioned her problem. Unfortunately, he had no answer, only "it's up to Cody."

Her three weeks were over. Jess flopped on a pile of soft straw in the barn with the kitten. Absently she played with him while still contemplating a good name. Suddenly, sunlight streamed on her face as Cody entered the barn. Jessica's face showed nothing of her concerns, and he was uncertain of what to say. Finally, he quietly said, "Jess, I've asked my parents and I'm going to come with you to Kingston for a little bit."

Her face lit up even more. "That's great! But," her voice dropped. "What about Korinn? Did you guys talk it out yet?"

Cody nodded. "We've reached an understanding. I definitely won't go anywhere without seeing her again first." Then he plopped down with her and they laughed together as the kitten walked all over them.

* * *

"And so you guys got back before me and had this planned out," Kari said. Cara, Jess, Michael, Matt, and Cody nodded. "I'm so glad to see you guys!" she cried. "Thank you. But we still have to find the others!"

"We will," assured Matt. "We will."


	5. Development

Intro: Yo

Intro: Yo! Here's the next chapter…I'm putting off working on my other fic again, because this one is probably the better story, so if I improve my writing while writing this story, the other fic will turn out better, right? It's funny though, I'm working on the fic that I don't know how will turn out, when I already planned the other one out completely. This chapter will be short, since it's just covering a little bit of stuff. Yeah, I don't usually go with the official ages for the first season, since I don't believe it. I changed the ending of 02, so that the only enemies were Arukenimon and Mummymon, just so that it's easier.

Across America

Chapter 4: Development

"How exactly do we go about looking people up all over the country?" Michael mused. "If they're like you, Kari, they'll have changed their names."

Kari absently rubbed Tailmon's ears (they had let Kari name the cat, since she had a good idea) and sighed. "If only we had Koushirou-san here! He could probably figure out a way to do it, if anyone could."

The six children on a mission sat in Kari's sunlit room. Kari, Cara, and Jess sat on the bed, Michael sat in her chair, and Cody and Matt sat on the ground. Cara glanced at the faces of the people in the room, then asked a question she had been meaning to ask for a while. "Okay, but am I the only one who doesn't really know what exactly is going on? I understand that we're finding you guy's friends, who got separated four years ago. You were visiting a friend who lived here in Kingston. There was relationship problems, arguments, and everyone but Kari took off, am I right?" Everyone except Jess nodded. "That all makes sense, but you all seem very close, and excuse me for saying so, but you're a kind of odd group." She narrowed her eyes slightly. "Not really the right ages, either," she said, looking squarely at Cody. "Maybe your parents were all are close, or maybe you're all related, or maybe even by chance you all came to be close friends. But then why do I get the feeling that I'm missing something?"

"I've been wondering about that too," admitted Jess. "I've seen that picture several times, and you're quite the mismatched group."

Their brunette best friend drew in a deep breath. She looked at Matt, Cody, and Michael. "Should we tell them, guys?"

"Might as well," said Matt, shrugging. "It's not really fair to keep them in the dark like this, and that part of our life is behind us now, anyway."

"You tell them, Matt," Michael suggested. "You were there from the beginning."

By now Cara and Jess were afire with curiosity. Jess tossed her golden hair. "Whoa, you guys are in something deep! All that secret stuff…"

Matt's blue eyes closed. "All right, here we go," he began. "It all started about seven years ago. No, it really started 12 years ago. There were only seven of us in the beginning."

"The beginning of what?!" burst out Cara. "We're dying of curiosity here!" 

Matt stuck his tongue out at her, looking for a moment like he was 13 again. "The young are so impatient," he sighed dramatically, before being struck with a pillow thrown by the redhead, who was glaring at him with stormy gray eyes. 

"Come on, slowpoke! Don't tell me your brain is weighted down from all that hair and hair gel!"

This set Matt and Kari to laughing hysterically. "N..no…Car..a…not…Yama..to…-san," Kari choked out, practically in tears from mirth. "Hahaha, you've…got…the…wrong…person!" She and Matt desperately tried to calm themselves. Cody pounded on Matt's back hard. He hacked for a few more seconds, then got himself under control.

"Any…anyway," he continued, still shaking a little. "I'll start a little farther in the future, actually. Seven kids were at summer camp. Their names were: Taichi Yagami, Takeru Takaishi, Sora Takenouchi, Koushirou Izumi, Jou Kido, Mimi Tachikawa, and myself, Yamato Ishida. Kari and Cody joined us later. Anyway, it started snowing on the first day of August! The seven of us went outside to check it out." He paused, "You know, now that I think about it, why didn't anybody else go outside?"

"Obviously, because you were Chosen," responded Michael. "Get on with it, man!"

Matt cleared his throat noisily. "As I was saying, we went outside, and in the snow were these strange devices. Brace yourself," he cautioned. "Because believe it or not, the seven of us were transported to another world."

Cara squinted at him skeptically. "Oh come on, Matt. You're just teasing again." 

"Yeah, that is kind of unbelievable," put in Jess. "Can you prove it?"

"Cara, Jess, he's not lying to you," said Kari. "You wanted the story, here it is! Every word is the truth, as unbelievable as it seems. I'm sure you can remember something weird that happened four and seven years ago."

Jess frowned. "You know, I think there was something big on the news four years ago, and yeah! Seven years too! But," she said, "I can't remember a thing!"

"I'd be surprised if you did," said Cody quietly. "I didn't remember anything earthshaking in my life until four years ago."

"Getting back on track," said Matt. "We were sent to a place called the Digital World, created from the Internet. There were seven digimon, each destined to because our partners, because we were the Chosen Children. We fought against the evil ravaging the Digital World, and our partner digimon evolved to higher and higher levels to be able to defeat them."

"Evolved?" asked Cara.

"They transformed, or got bigger, as Mimi would put it," answered Michael. 

"Right," continued Matt. "We fought Devimon, who almost killed my younger brother, Takeru, then traveled to a different continent, gaining tags and crests, which helped our digimon evolve to the next level. Each of us had different crests. Mine is friendship," he said, with a slightly dark tone. "To be honest, it didn't suit me at all at first, and still doesn't as much as would have one of the others."

"Whatever, Yamato-san," snapped Kari. "Don't go there again. You're a great friend."

"Thanks, Kari, but be honest. Back then, I was…quite different. Anyhow, we defeated Etemon, then had to return to the real world to defeat Vandemon, who was searching for the eighth child, which turned out to be Taichi's younger sister, your friend Kari. She was only eight back then."

Jess shook her head. "Battling monsters? A Digital World? Kari, I can see why you wouldn't tell us, but we _are _your best friends. We wouldn't let your secret out."

Her redhead friend nodded in agreement as Kari sighed. "I know, I know. It didn't really seem important anymore. The Chosen Children have all been separated, and the Digital World is finally at peace, as well as the real world. Why stir it up again?" To their surprise, tears had formed in her eyes. "You know, Yamato-san hasn't told half the story, really. There were so many, so many of our digimon friends who gave their lives for us, for _me_. And it still hurts, even after seven years." One tear escaped and fell onto her shirt.

Jess bowed her head. "Sorry, Kari. I didn't mean to sound angry or anything." She put her arm around Kari's shoulders. "I didn't mean to bring up anything painful."

Matt and the others looked on uncomfortably. They all bore their own guilt. "Er, I"ll just keep going," the boy said finally. "Anyway, we defeated Vandemon, even after he came back after we killed him the first time, but we had to return to the Digital World and defeat the Dark Masters, and the source of the evil in the Digital World." He coughed slightly. "As Kari said, I'm not going into detail at all, since a lot more went on, and none of it pleasant. By the way," he looked at the now calm Kari. "Kari, just call me Matt, k?" The girl nodded mutely, with a faint sad smile. "After we defeated Apocalymon, we returned to the real world, believing that the trouble was over. And here was where you might remember something. Seven years ago, the Digital World appeared in the sky from after we defeated Vandemon to after we returned."

Cara blinked. "You know, I think I remember that now. And four years ago, around Christmas, Jess and I were visiting New York City, and there was some commotion over by the Rockefeller Center with some big monsters. Was that…?"

Kari grinned now. "That would be Daisuke and Mimi, along with some other Chosen Children. But that's getting ahead."

"Oh right. Ok Matt, keep going."

"Well, three years later, we were all different people, and Mimi had moved here to New York. We found out that someone called the Digimon Kaizer was taking over the Digital World, but he turned out to be a kid, Ken Ichijouji, who was really a Chosen Child. Now there were three new Chosen Children, Daisuke, Miyako, Iori (Cody), and Kari and Takeru were Chosen again. They also defeated Arukenimon and Mummymon, and so far, that's been it. We can still go to the Digital World, but not very often." Matt blinked. "Wow, I told you guys like, nothing, really. But that's about the bare outline of it."

"That's okay," laughed Michael. "It would take too long if you mentioned much more. That's good enough."

Just then the phone rang. Kari raced down the hall to Michael's room, where there was a phone. "Cody! It's Korinn!"

Cody quickly exited the room and eagerly snatched up the phone. "Hi, Korinn?"

"Korinn…Cody's girlfriend, right?" asked Cara. "Back in Kansas?"

Jess nodded happily. "They're so cute together!"

"I never would've thought it of little Cody," sighed Matt. "Having a girlfriend at the age of 12."

"Well, people surprise you," said Kari, returning to the room. "Don't forget that I could've had a boyfriend at age 11, even if I was only a week away from 12."

"That's right, your birthday is on August 4, Kari! Just about a month away! What do you want?" exclaimed Cara. 

"Hey, isn't there more important stuff at hand than discussing birthday gifts?" asked Matt. "Like what our next move should be?"

Everyone fell silent at his question. What could they do next? No one had any idea where another friend might be. "Well, maybe we'll get lucky and just happen to run into them, like we ran into Cody and Matt," said Jess hopefully. "I mean, you are Chosen, right? Destined to be together?"

"That does bring up a good point," admitted Kari. "We've been awfully lucky finding you, Matt, and Cody. Maybe more than chance is involved here. But," she added, "We couldn't have done it if it wasn't for Cara and Jess. Thanks, more than I can say," she said with wholehearted gratitude.

Cody entered the room again. "Hey guys, you were talking about lucky breaks, right? How's this for lucky? Korinn and I were just chit-chatting, and I asked her how the family was doing. She says that her brother, Jackson, was looking at colleges, and there's a college in Virginia famous for its two geniuses, Izzy Izumi and Ken Ichijouji."

Silence reigned for five seconds. "Well, looks like maybe fate is involved," said Michael.


	6. Miyako and Daisuke

Intro: I didn't want to write the next part about what's happening with Kari, just in case it got kind of repetitive

Intro: I didn't want to write the next part about what's happening with Kari, just in case it got kind of repetitive. So, here's two other digidestined's story. The newspaper article is really stupid, but I couldn't think of anything else to put. Yolei's story is really rather stupid, but it was the only way. I'm not sure how long it would actually take to get from Seattle to Colorado. I just realized that the ages really don't match this fic and the actually show, but oh well. The ages are just all the same for the sake of simplicity. And yes, Wallace doesn't actually exist in the 02 storyline, but I stuck him in here anyway!

Across America

Chapter 5: Miyako & Daisuke

A lone figure hurried across an empty intersection. It had rained earlier that day, and the streets were still slick. The figure shivered, regretting not wearing a coat, as the chill breeze blew over her bare shoulders. Glancing nervously around her, the girl had to restrain herself from going to an all out run. This wasn't the best neighborhood, but she had already been late…

The girl flinched at the sound of pattering footsteps somewhere, echoing through the silent street. She had never been a very brave person…but no, that had all changed. She wasn't going to freak out just because someone was making loud running noises. Unfortunately, it would have been better in this case if she had simply given into fear and ran as fast as she could. The running sounds had gotten closer and closer, and they were right on her! There was one terrified shriek, which was suddenly cut off.

* * *

Two days later, this article was found in the Seattle Times.

Girl Gone Missing from busy Seattle

Friends in tears, can't understand it

A young girl of 16, Yolei Inoue, has disappeared since July 20. Friends report that she was on her way to a party, as she had called minutes before leaving. She never arrived, as far as anyone can tell. If anyone knows anything about the whereabouts of this girl, please contact Marie Hadges at (625) 387-4899. Yolei is: 5'6; light brown eyes with contacts; short purple hair. A picture follows this article.

A man in his 20's with dark hair and eyes sniggered after reading the article. "'Friends in tears' eh? Hahahhahaaa, never heard anything more ridiculous in my life!" He pounded on the table. "A girl like you wouldn't have any friends." The girl who had been sleeping, lying against it awoke with a start. Her light brown eyes flew open and she screamed…or at least tried to. She thrashed her purple-haired head in frustration. Her mouth was gagged. "Struggle all you want, girlie. You're ours,now." Two other men lounging in other parts of the room burst into laughter. Tears filled in the captive's eyes. She was trapped. And these filthy kidnappers knew it. "How does it feel to be truly stuck and helpless, INOUE?" He paused to study the shocked look on the girl's face. "Yes, you won't have remembered me, Yolei, or should I say, MIYAKO?" He got up and walked over to her, ripping off the gag.

Yolei gasped. "All right, who are you?? And how do you know me?"

"Haha, took me three years to track you down. Thought you'd be safe and snug in your home back in Odaiba, with that cursed family Mini Mart of yours. Oh no, you'd moved to America, just you!" It took Yolei a moment to realize that he was speaking in Japanese! "It was all your fault, you know that? You brought this on yourself!"

"What do you mean?! And why have you been stalking me?"

"Don't play dumb! There I was, broke and desperate, and you turned me away! Wouldn't let me work for your family in the mini mart! All I wanted was a job? And what did you say? 'Ew, no way! You're so horrible-looking!'" he mimicked in a high, little-girl's voice.

The girl turned red. "All right, so I was a stupid, blind little girl six years ago! Plus, you gave me the creeps!"

Her captor snorted. "It doesn't matter, anymore. I should give you the creeps, because I'm giving you two days to live. You see, I was given another chance to live as well. Two days after being refused by you, (where were your parents, anyway??) I did find a kind old man who took me in. Too bad I had to kill him." Yolei's eyes widened in horror. "If you can escape from being trapped in these two days, I'll leave you alone. Or else," he drew an imaginary line across his throat. Yolei gulped. "Starting from now," he glanced at the clock. "12:00 p.m. 48 hours from now is all you've got left. What are the chances of you escaping, with my 'friends' and I keeping tabs on you all the time? Pretty slim, but then again, so were mine. Let's go." He dragged a screaming Yolei from the room with help from his two thugs. 

All this time, Yolei's mind was racing. This was insane! How could this guy hold a grudge against her after six years? He turned out to be okay, why does he want to kill me?? And how the hell am I suppose to escape like this, bound, in a party dress, not to mention guarded by these goons? Heck, how am I even going to use the bathroom?? Oh Kami-sama, help! They threw her into a small U-HAUL truck. One guy stayed with her, while the other two rode in front.

They drove. Yolei lost track of the hours. At first she couldn't stop quaking. But her thoughts turned to the night she'd been kidnapped. How she'd tried to be courageous and keep going without fear. That's right, I'm not the same girl I was six years ago. And certainly not the same Inoue Miyako that existed four years ago. I'm Yolei now. A considerate person who doesn't judge by looks. A person who doesn't get scared at the first sign of battle. A person who's gotten over her first love. I won't give in to them. I won't let them see me scared! 

"Hahaha, 12 hours have passed already," the insane man said. "How time does fly when you're enjoying revenge." Yolei kept silent. The girl's eyes hardened slightly, though. She desperately need to _go_. She wasn't going to give those thugs the satisfaction of seeing her weak though. She'd hold it in surely. They won't get to me, because I won't let them!

* * *

When she woke up six hours later, her resolve broke. Meekly, she asked, "I need to…use the bathroom?"

The main guy snorted and nodded toward one of the other guys. "Make it snappy, Inoue."

Thankfully, they at least had the decency not to turn around. She still felt horribly embarrassed and ashamed of her weakness. Well, she wouldn't give them that satisfaction again! For the rest of the time, she held it in. By the second night, though, she was jittery. Were they really going to kill her? Please say this is some bad joke, she begged silently. When I wake up, I'll be home in Seattle, in Odaiba. Maybe the past four years has just been one big nightmare! The man turned to look at her. 

"Bet you're regretting ever refusing me, eh? Bet you're wishing we wouldn't kill you too. No such luck for a spoiled brat like you! You're destined for the Underworld!"

In spite of herself, Yolei shivered. This was going too far. Slowly, she glanced at the clock inside the truck. 10 o'clock. Do I really have two hours to live? Nononononononononono!!! I'm too young to go! Somebody, help me!

Have you ever noticed, that when you really want something to come, time drags on for what seems like years. But, as Yolei was discovering, it was just the opposite when you were scared out of your wits and was dreading a two-hour deadline. Minutes ticked by like seconds. Hours ticked by like minutes. "Ieeeeeeeeeeeeee! It's not possible!" she shouted, her mind whirling from the impossibly fast clock.

One of the thugs mistook her meaning. "Oh, it's possible all right, pretty one. You're gonna die."

The main guy turned around. "It's time, Inoue." He grabbed her roughly by the arm, and another thug joined him. The third picked up a gun and loaded it, slowly and deliberately. Yolei screamed. There were voices somewhere outside. The men froze. "D*** it, what's someone doing out in the middle of nowhere!" he cursed. "All right, I guess they're just going to have to go too. Let's go." He led them outside. 

Half of Yolei screamed inwardly for the people to flee for their lives, before they were innocently killed. The other half screamed for them to help her. In fact, she did scream. The main guy cursed again, and gave her a sharp slap. Dragging her bodily outside, he said loudly, "All right, who's out there? Show yourselves, or we kill the girl." Yolei kept silent, but she knew they would kill her either way. Slowly, a blond boy with blue eyes stepped out from behind some bushes. He appeared to be alone. "Where's your buddy, kid?"

The blond boy began speaking frantically in Japanese, saying that he didn't know English. Yolei's captor also began speaking in Japanese, ending with, "Gomen nasai, I have to kill you." There was a cracking sound, and a feeling of wind next to Yolei. Trembling, she shut her eyes and prayed…..but opened them in shock when her arm was released. The thug had slumped to the ground, eyes glazed over. "Gomen nasai, did that hurt?" a voice rang out mockingly. The other two took one look at their fallen boss, and the giant limb held by the blow-deliverer, and decided that it was time to hightail it. Dashing for the truck, they drove off in a cloud of dust. Yolei, still shaking, turned slowly to thank her savior. 

With purplish-brown eyes and dark purple hair, the average-sized boy grinned impishly. "Hope they didn't rough you up much," he announced.

"Nicely done, Davis," commented the other boy. "Are you all right miss?" he asked gently. She nodded shakily. "Let's get her to the house and see what we can do for her." He took the gun from the thug and started dragging him along with him.

Yolei followed them through a bunch of woods to a small, but cozy, home. There was a sign that read, "SUMMER MEMORY." By now she had calmed down. "Say, you two live out here alone?"

Davis, who had been staring at her, looking puzzled throughout their trip when he thought she wasn't looking, answered, "Yeah, this is actually Wallace's old home. If you're wondering, Wallace's mom died a few years ago." Wallace looked at the ground and sighed. Davis's eyes turned cloudy, "I miss her. She was one of the nicest people I've ever met. She just took me in after-" he cut off suddenly, looking sorrowfully out into the distance. Yolei's skin prickled as she stared at him. Somehow…he almost looked like…he turned to face her, his cheerful face back on. "Anyway, we make a living by making sure no one trespasses on this nice spot of land without a good reason. The government wants this place free of outside influences."

Yolei nodded silently, although her suspicions rose considerably. Where had she seen that grin before? And that sorrowful face…somehow it didn't fit the purple-haired boy before her. 

* * *

"Thanks," the purple-haired girl said after Wallace handed her a cup of apple cider. 

Davis wondered briefly what the kidnapper (who at the moment, was trussed up in a corner of the house) wanted with this pretty girl. Well, of course, she was very pretty. That might have been reason enough. She had lavender-colored hair. It brought back memories to his mind, of a different girl with lavender hair. Of course, Miyako had had long hair, and she had worn glasses. Not to mention she didn't have pierced ears. Davis shook his head ruefully. Now was no time to reminisce, even if he didn't hurt over Hikari-chan anymore. I was blind and immature back then. And I certainly acted it, all the time. Even though I'm better now, I'm not ready to go back. Not yet. And it was mere coincidence that a Japanese girl with the same hair and eye color as a girl he knew once was here. But even so, he felt his mouth moving of its own volition, "What's your name?"

"Yolei," she replied, sounding tired. "Yolei Inoue."

"Do you…is there someone in your family called Miyako?"

This time it was Yolei's turn to stiffen in shock. "M-m-miyako? Well, yeah."

Wallace watched this exchange with narrowed eyes. "Say Davis, she does look like her, doesn't she? And it would make sense for her to be out in America, wouldn't it?"

Davis said nothing at first, just stared at the fidgeting girl in front of him. Sighing, he spoke, "Miyako? It's Motomiya Daisuke."

* * *

Wallace had driven the kidnapper off to the authorities, miles away. Yolei sighed and laid back on the couch. She had said she had wanted to take a nap, especially after Daisuke's confession. Thanks to the ticking of a loud clock in the background, she couldn't sleep. Oh why, why was this happening to her? First, she had been kidnapped, almost shot, and now she was faced with a person from the past she had left behind. Of course, I do understand that what I felt for Ken-kun was nothing but a passing crush, if I don't feel it anymore, but I felt like such a fool, she thought blankly. I do wonder what he looks like now…probably even cuter. She shut her eyes and pretended to sleep as Daisuke stood above her. "Miyako?"

She sighed and sat up. "Daisuke, it's Yolei now."

The tall boy grinned. "And it's Davis now for me." Yolei scooted over and motioned for him to sit next to her. "So…did you want to talk about it?"

"What's to talk about?" she said bitterly. "My life is screwed up. Isn't that enough?" She turned to face him. For a moment, she was taken aback by the innocent, grown-up face that met hers. Yes, Daisuke had certainly gotten very good looks. "You can't make me go back-"

"I don't want to," he answered. "If I did want to, I'd have to explain about myself too."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, staring at each other. Yolei smiled gently. "You've really grown up, haven't you?"

"You too." He paused for a second, then said, "We're kind of alike, aren't we?"

"Yeah."

"Think it means something?"

"Yeah."

"Do you want to stay here for a while?"

"Yeah."

Simultaneously, the two leaned on each other, recognizing the beginning of the time they would be together. They sat together and slowly slept, even as the clock ticked on.


	7. We're Not Alone Anymore

Intro: Haha, now back to Kari

Intro: Haha, now back to Kari! I was going to make it her birthday/their memorial day…but then I realized how confusing it would get since I'm a stickler for making sure ages and that sort of thing are all accurate, so that got tossed. But it would be about August now, right? It was late July last chapter…so now it's just a small little celebration. And no no, don't get the wrong idea about Kari and Michael, they're just sort of siblings. Yes, I wrote this fic after seeing the ending of 02 (and hated it!!!)

Across America

Chapter 6: We're Not Alone Anymore

Kari couldn't believe her eyes. It was him, it was really him! "Takeru-kun! Takeru-kun!"

"Hikari-chan!" he was smiling, so brightly, he was happy to see her! "No, I should call you Hikari."

"Takeru!" she sobbed, throwing herself into his arms. "Oh, Takeru!" He hugged her fiercely in return. But her arms seemed to sink into him, and to her horror, he was slipping out of her grasp. "Takeru, no!"

His feet were disappearing into bits of data, fading, fading, and then he was gone, forever.

* * *

Kari awoke with a start. She gasped over and over, her heartbeat zooming. Sweat dripped down her forehead and tears streamed down her face. With a sigh, she wiped them away. She hugged her sheets closer. For some reason, she was suddenly freezing. "What does it mean?" she whispered. "What does it mean?" She started sobbing like she was a little girl again. "Oniichan, Oniichan, I want my Oniichan!" Then she was up, stumbling for the door. Matt was staying with Cara's family, Cody with Jess's family. There was no one home except Michael's parents, and…Michael! They were her parents, and Michael was her brother…She stumbled through the hallway, seeming to have lost her ability to walk in a straight line. Luckily, Michael's door was open, or Kari would've crashed through it in her crazed state. Even so, Michael woke up as soon as Kari set foot in his room. 

Rubbing his eyes sleepily, he asked, "Kari? What's wrong?"

With a soft wail, she collapsed on the ground. That woke her "brother" up. He rushed over and gave her a hug. She began sobbing, her words choked out. "I can't take it anymore…I can't! I don't know if he's okay, and every time I dream about him," she gasped for air, "he's being hurt in some way, and I don't know if it means something, and I can't find out if he's okay, and we're never going to find him!" She looked up to Michael with tears in her eyes. "It's hopeless, isn't it? All of this? You know, don't you? It's impossible!" She collapsed again, burying her tear-streaked face in his shoulder. Michael kept hugging her even after she fell asleep, eyes staring sadly into the darkness.

* * *

The morning air was cool and gentle. Gentle light played across her body, lighting up her bright red hair. She could feel the wind on her face…wait, the wind on her face…Cara opened her eyes. Her eyes automatically turned towards her clock, which read 7:13 in digital numbers. Her alarm hadn't gone off…her eyes turned towards the window. Matt stood there, looking at the beautiful morning outside. He had apparently came in and opened the drapes and the window. Cara sat up and stretched, yawning. Matt turned around. "You woke up pretty quickly." 

Cara glared at him, and threw her pillow at him, which he nimbly dodged. "I could have gotten 17 more minutes of sleep!"

The blond simply laughed and skipped out of the room. Cara's gray eyes softened. Kari had told her that Matt had been the lone wolf of the group years ago, and had gone under a remarkable change. He seems very energetic this morning, she thought. Still unlike him, as far as I know. She smiled and got up out of bed. Strolling slowly towards the window, she thought, It really is a beautiful morning. She turned and followed Matt's example, skipping to the bathroom. She took a quick shower and washed up, dressing in a plain, light blue t-shirt and jean shorts. Her parents were already up, being the early risers they were, and they had made Cara's favorite breakfast. She helped herself to pancakes, syrup, butter, slices of bacon, and a cup of orange juice. Biting into syrup-smothered, butter-covered pancakes, Cara wished fervently that she could cook this good. Despite all her talents, Cara couldn't cook. Jess and Kari teased her about that, but only because they could cook. And here was Matt, an excellent chef. After finishing, she announced, "Matt and I are going to Kari's again. Thanks for the great food!"

Her parents laughed gently. "Thank Matt, honey," said her mom. "He's a wonderful cook! I've never seen pancakes or bacon so perfect!"

Matt grinned at the praise. "Thanks, Mrs. Wilkinson. I used to always cook for my dad back in Japan. But it's not a real special talent or anything."

"My stomach wouldn't agree," said Mr. Wilkinson. "And Cara, those shorts are too short! I declare, the young people these days," he grumbled.

Cara rolled her eyes. Matt put a hand to his gelled hair. Mrs. Wilkinson laughed as the two quietly left. 

Outside, Cara said brightly, "You know Matt, Mom and Dad are right, you're a great cook! Why don't you be a chef?"

Matt looked startled. "…Cooking is just something for fun, not really a career I had in mind."

"Why not? Were you planning on doing something, like being an astronaut?"

"Oh no!" exclaimed Matt, looking horrified. "Being an astronaut seems stupid. I'd never do that!" he lowered his voice, "Just between you and me, I think that exploring space for other life forms is stupid. After all, we know that other worlds exist already."

"True, true…" Cara trailed off as she spotted Kari and Michael's huge house up ahead, and Jess and Cody walking to it. "Hey you two!!"

Jess and Cody waved and waited for them. "Beautiful morning, isn't it?" Cody asked pleasantly. "Much cooler than in Kansas!"

"Come on, let's not keep Kari and Michael waiting."

The Michael that met them at the door looked tired and worried. "Hey man, did something happen?" asked Matt, concerned. 

"Sort of," Michael said. He took a deep breath. "Kari's still sleeping though. I'm worried about her. She keeps having bad dreams about Takeru, and last night, she just completely fell apart. Guys, we have to hurry up and find the others. We've been sitting around for nearly a month trying to figure our next move, and here it is: We go to Virginia, and drag away Koushirou and Ken. Simple as that, right?"

"Michael," a voice called from above. "Are they here already? Oh my gosh, it's already 8:30???? Why didn't you wake me up?" Kari appeared above them, running frantically to the shower.

Cara giggled. "Guess she's back to normal now. But Kari being late is new."

* * *

In the end, Michael's dad flew them to Virginia on his private plane. On the way, Kari announced, "Tomorrow's August 1. It's time to celebrate!"

Cara and Jess looked blank. "I didn't know August 1 was a holiday," remarked Jess. 

"It's a Memorial Day for the Chosen Children," explained Cody. "It's the day the original Chosen Children first went to the Digital World, the day it all started. "It's our holiday, and this time, we don't have to celebrate by ourselves," he said, smiling at the faces around him. "We're sort of together now. And when we get to Virginia, Ken and Koushirou can celebrate with us!"

"So, should we get you guys gifts or anything?" asked Cara.

"No, no, it's just a get-together," said Cody. "Well, I only celebrated it once with the older kids anyhow, but that's just my understanding of it."

"We're almost there!" called Michael's dad. "Seatbelts on for the landing!"

* * *

"Ken?"

"Yeah, Izzy?"

"Tomorrow is…"

"I know."

"Let's take the day off."

"……………"

"I mean, I know that you-you still…"

"No, it's okay. Let's celebrate."

"I'm glad. I didn't want to on my own."

"It's lonely that way. But once you wouldn't have minded. Neither of us would. Because now we're not alone anymore."

* * *

"So this is Charlottesville!" exclaimed Kari. The city was nice, but felt like an oven. The air was humid, with a warm breeze, and the sun beat down. "I'd never have guessed. I always thought that Virginia was cold, but I guess not."

"At least not in the summer," agreed Michael. "So where do we go? We only have a few hours before sunset."

"Someone at the University will know."

"Well duh."

"Yeah, but where is the University?"

"Excuse me," Jess asked a passing biker. "Where is the University of Virginia? Could you give us directions?"

The biker was about her age, and dazzled by Jess's smile. "Uh, uh, it's up that way, and you can't miss it. There's a big lawn, and it's about a mile away," he stammered. "Uh, I gotta go. Bye." He took off at top speed. Jess couldn't help herself, so she giggled a little.

"Don't tease the boys, Jessie!" admonished Cara. Jess rolled her eyes and tossed her hair.

"Hey, come on guys!" said Kari impatiently. Usually she would laugh at her friends' teasing, but today she was a little high-strung. The group set off at a comfortable walk in the hot summer day.

* * *

Half an hour later found them in front of the Computer Science's building. "Koushirou will definitely be here," confirmed Matt. "I'm not sure about Ken."

It was easy to find out where Koushirou, or rather, Izzy, was, and a polite student mentioned that Ken was probably with them, since they were good friends. Cara and Jess got to the room first, and ran on in. A spiked red head and a blue one swiveled to the direction of the door. Izzy and Ken had been in the middle of talking about some thing or the other when they were interrupted. The two were used to visitors, but…Ken frantically tried to clear his head. That girl…she was so pretty…her voice was very sweet…her movements so graceful…the world seemed to swim through his head. "Excuse me?" asked Izzy. "You have someone you want us to meet?"

At that moment, Kari and the others burst into the room. "You were right, Kari, when you said Cara could run fast!" said Matt, panting. 

"And Jess is on the-" Kari stopped as she saw the other two in the room. "Izzy, Ken."

"Hikari-chan," Izzy acknowledged. "Yamato-san, Michael-san, Iori-kun."

Izzy had really grown, and stood even taller than Ken, and Ken was tall for his age. His hair was longer now, spiked straight up. Ken wasn't changed much, except his hair was shorter. His face broke into one of his rare smiles as he saw the people he had left behind four years ago. Then the tension was broken, as everyone broke into smiles, though Ken's knees trembled when he saw the red-haired girls. Introductions went around, and soon the group was chattering like nothing had ever happened.

* * *

"You know," said Kari, "I think that Ken likes you, Cara!"

Cara gave her a funny look. "What makes you think that?"

"I noticed it too!" said Jess gleefully. "It must've been love at first sight! Didn't you see his hands trembling whenever he looked at you?"

"And when you asked him what he was doing, his voice trembled when he answered! And he keeps blushing, " Kari added. 

"Well, I mean, he is cute and all," admitted Cara. "And he seems to be an awfully nice person. But that doesn't prove anything."

"Well, well, maybe a guy will finally land our charming little friend," giggled Jess.

"Shut up!" yelled Cara, turning as crimson as her hair. 

"Hoho, so you do like him!" Kari laughed. "Ken and Cara, sitting in a tree, K-" she was forced to stop as Cara tackled her, tickling the life out of her. In the end, the three were laughing so hard that they forgot about Ken.

But Ken couldn't forget about Cara. She was really pretty, and she seemed to be an awfully nice person. But of course, that didn't prove anything. And of course, Izzy wasn't fooled. "So, maybe a girl will finally land my charming friend here."

"Shut up!" yelled Ken. Luckily for him, the phone rang right then. Face flaming, the blue-haired boy quickly snatched the phone up. "Hello?"

"Ken, it's Kari."

"Hey."

"So…I know we just got here and all, but we wanted to know if you would come back to New York with us. You know, join the search for the rest of the kids."

"…………………."

"Ken?"

"Well…would that be all right? We didn't exactly leave on the best of terms…and well…" Ken sighed and tossed the phone to Izzy, then quickly left the room.

"Ken? Ken?"

"Kari, it's Izzy."

"What's wrong?"

"Well…" Izzy lowered his voice. "Ken is concerned about Miyako's feelings still, and how the rest of the group feels about him…there was some nasty Digimon Kaizer stuff said back then…it was uncalled for…but Miyako was upset…"

"I see."

"I'm fine with going back, I guess. There's nothing really holding me here in Virginia, and I miss my parents. Besides, it's time we ended this stupid argument, right?"

"Exactly!"

"But if Ken won't go, I won't either. We only met a year ago here, but we're good friends now, and I won't just desert him."

"No one blames him for anything!" Kari exclaimed.

"I know, but Ken doesn't. But…maybe with some help…"

"What do you mean?"

"Ken has a crush on your friend, Cara."

"I know! He was so obvious about it!" 

Izzy heard something in the background that sounded something like, "Oh no, not again! KARI!"

Clearing his throat, he said, "Anyway, I don't mean to be manipulative, but perhaps she could persuade him."

"Izzy! I'm shocked at that suggestion from you!"

"Yes, well…she could give it a try, right? Or is she already attached?"

Another muffled noise, "What do you mean, what suggestion?!" "Cara, be quiet! No, she's not 'attached', so to speak, but is that really right…? Anyhow, I have to go. _Certain_ people are being troublesome on my side. So, we'll talk later."

"Okay, bye."

Kari turned to her suddenly scared friend. She has that scary look on her face, thought Cara, that she and Jess get when they're plotting something…

"Cara, you're going to do me a favor."

* * *

Ken fidgeted as the pretty red-haired girl, Cara, entered his apartment. "H-hi."

He really is fidgeting, thought Cara. Sighing inwardly, she smiled sweetly and asked, "Ken, are you coming back with us?"

"Uh…I…" the look on his face was utterly helpless. 

Cara felt a twinge of sympathy for him. Yes, it did look like he had a crush on her. That look was really cute though…What am I thinking? She thought, but her heart was beating faster than usual. "We don't want to impose on your life or anything, but…it's Kari."

"Kari?"

"Yeah. I mean, she's been really upset about this big mess that happened a long time ago. It would really help her, and well," she paused. "All right, I'll be blunt. You like me, don't you?"

"Y—ye-yes," Ken stammered. "I mean, n-no."

Cara smiled almost shyly. "I'm not being dishonest, but I would like it if you came with us, too."

Ken's eyes widened. "Really? You're not just saying that?"

Blushing faintly, Cara shook her head. Her heart was pounding way overtime now. Suddenly, she giggled. Ken, still surprised, stopped being uptight and laughed too.

* * *

So the next day after that, they left, although they had a super breakfast, one that they would always remember. Maybe Cara's right, and I should open a restaurant, mused Matt. They all seemed to enjoy my food a lot. It was late afternoon, and they had just gotten back, lounging around Michael's house, just relaxing. Matt was in the kitchen, wondering if he should cook dinner too, when the cordless phone in the kitchen rang. "I'll get it!" he yelled. "Hello?"

There was silence on the other end for a second. "Yamato? Is this Yamato?" 

Matt's heart skipped a beat. That voice…he would recognize that voice anywhere. "Mimi? Mimi??"

"Oh, Yamato, it really is you!!"

"I can't believe it! Where are you?"

"San Diego, California."


	8. Hot and Cold, no, Less Heat

Intro: The phone call

Intro: The phone call! Get set, to San Diego! This one will be short, as will be the parts about Tai, Sora, and TK. In fact, I'm not sure I don't think I'm going to create a separate chapter for them, just put them in part of a short chapter. Cause ya see, they weren't planned out, and I think the story's gotten kinda dull, plus it's rather long.

Across America

Chapter 7: Hot and Cold, no, Less Heat

"Hey Joe, I heard you were heading down south for a bit."

A young man wearing squarish glasses looked up from his desk. "Oh hey, Gary. Yeah."

His friend groaned. "Why man? You're already in one of the good medical schools! Why even bother looking at San Diego?"

Joe grinned. "I'm not planning on leaving necessarily, just taking a look. I heard they have a class taught by Dr. Thomas Wilder, and you know I want to learn from the best!"

"If you do, you'll get accepted for sure. Good luck, man."

"You too, Gary."

Joe left his classroom at the 'good medical school' of San Francisco. He was a tall, good-looking young man, although he wouldn't ditch his glasses, claiming that contacts had scratched his eye before. His longish hair was put in a low ponytail, and he walked with a long, quick stride. A call rang through the hallways. "Joe!"

Joe turned quickly and intercepted the small Chinese girl. "Hey Em!"

Emma "Lucky" Chan was Joe's "lucky" girlfriend. She wasn't actually all that short, just looked like it being next to Joe. She had glossy black hair and shiny dark eyes, with fair skin. She and Joe got along very well, not having many arguments, and Joe was quite surprised to find someone he could really confide in. Joe was honest enough to admit that even though being alone in America on the West Coast had been a little nerve-wracking at first, the past two years had been the happiest in his entire life. Of course, Joe had never really been very happy, even when he worked things out with his family. Meanwhile, Joe and Emma walked hand in hand down the busy streets of San Francisco. "So…" said Emma. "You're going to San Diego tomorrow right?"

Her boyfriend nodded gently. "Just for about a week. If I stay there, I'll…I"ll fly home every weekend!"

Emma giggled. "Joe, you're so silly sometimes! If you stay in San Diego, I"ll come with you!"

"Who's being silly?"

* * *

The next morning found Joe waving goodbye to Emma from the window of his plane. Even after all of these years, I still get motion sick, he thought with good humor. Well, some dramamine cured that. He couldn't help reflecting every time he saw the dark waters of the bay. San Francisco was a good place to live for him, especially since it was near the water. The foggy mornings overlooking the thick waters were always magic to the holder of Sincerity. I am happy here though, he thought. This is the perfect place for me. Although, I feel…wistful, I guess. I want to see how the others are doing. And Gomamon. I want to see if they're happy now. I wanted to see them grow up. He sighed. Well, no point in thinking depressing thoughts. They probably don't want to see each other still, or me. That's okay. Joe was proud to report that by the time he landed, he hadn't felt sick at all.

* * *

"Geez, it's so much warmer here than in San Francisco," Joe complained over the phone. 

"Yeah, well, it's nice to be in cold San Francisco," Emma's voice responded.

"Haha, you know that it's not as warm, not cold. There's no such thing as cold."

"But think how inconvenient that would be to say! Oh, my cell phone's almost dead, gotta run Joe. Love you!"

"I love you too. Talk to you later!" Talking to Emma always made him feel so good. In fact, just being around her made him feel good. I guess that's what they mean by falling in love. Glancing at his watch, he yelped, "12 o'clock already!" The talk about the class started now! Joe sprinted out of the hotel room, down the stairs, through the lobby, out the door, and down the street. "'Scuse me, pardon me," he yelled, while rushing through crowds of people. The hotel wasn't so far from the campus, so it only took five minutes of hard running to get there. Now the people became students, Joe's age, younger, older, their faces blurred from his glasses. Rushing down the sidewalk, he turned a corner and ran smack into three girls, mainly the brown-haired girl in the middle. 

"Ouch," she mumbled, dusting herself off. 

"I'm sorry," apologized Joe, also getting up. "Here, I'll help you up." He reached over and took the girl's hand, and got a good look at her face. He dropped her hand as their eyes locked, black against brown. He knew right away who it was. She hadn't changed a whole lot in four years. Her hair, like Matt's, was more like her style back when they first went to the Digital World, but much longer, and she did look older. "Mimi-chan…" he whispered.

"Jou-senpai?" she exclaimed, shocked. "What…what are you doing here?"

"Er, Mimi, I…what are you doing here?"

Mimi chuckled a little. "I live here!"

"Hey Mimi, you know him?"

"Wow, he's cute!"

Joe blinked. "Um…so you go to San Diego?"

"Yup!" she said enthusiastically. "Do you? I never saw you before!" She actually sounded happy to see him.

"Oh no, but I might…" Joe gasped. "I gotta run! I'm way late! I'll talk to you later!" he called, even has he ran full speed off again.

Mimi giggled. Was this Joe? Yes, but he was different. Not like me, I haven't changed much at all. "Hey Mimi, you know him?" one of her friends asked.

"Sure!" she replied. "We've known each other for a while, but I haven't seen him in four years."

"If I had a friend that cute, I would've talked to him every chance I got!" her friends all knew that Mimi didn't keep in touch with any of her old friends or family, she remembered with a pang. Well, I can sort this out with Jou-senpai later.

* * *

Joe felt very foolish. The foolishness he had gotten over, he thought angrily. This is her fault, because she belongs in my past! How could he be so stupid as to for get to get some kind of contact information from Mimi? Not to mention walking in in the middle of Dr. Wilder's lecture…clumsy, clumsy, clumsy. Later in the day, he called Emma again. "Hey Em."

"Joe! How'd the intro go?"

"…..horrible. I was late, and I ran into one of my old friends."

"Really? Which one?"

"Mimi Tachikawa."

"Oooohhh, that pretty girl you showed me from your picture…"

"Yeah."

"So…are you going to stay for the class?"

"I…I don't know. What do you think?"

The voice on the other end sighed. "Joe, I don't know. Take a look for another few days, after all, one day doesn't tell you anything."

"Thanks, Em. You always help me solve these things!"

"Ha, you could've figured it out yourself!"

They laughed a little, reviewed some of Emma's day, then promised to call each other with another, "I love you!"

"Okay!" said Joe as he hung up. "I'll get a student directory or something…"

As it turned out, he didn't need to. They saw each other walking, and decided to stop at a café to talk and get a drink.

"I'll have a raspberry iced tea," Mimi told the server.

"I'll have a lemonade," said Joe. The two sat in silence for a minute after the waitress left. "So Mimi, what have you been up to for the past four years?"

The girl smiled. "Finishing high school, entering college here, living in the dorms, a part-time job, that sort of thing, you know? How about you?"

"Pretty much the same as you, except I don't live in the dorms."

"What about your love life, Jou-senpai? Did you find your special one?"

Joe grinned in spite of himself. "I did, and she's great. Her name's Emma. You should meet her, Mimi. She's awesome!"

Mimi smiled wistfully. "I'd love to meet her."

"One lemonade, one raspberry iced tea!" the waitress announced, putting down gently two full glasses of iced liquid. 

Mimi sipped her tea. It felt good against the oppressive heat outside, ice cold like the mountains. She sighed slighly. 

Joe took a gulp, then asked, "Have you kept in touch with Yamato?"

Her eyes downcast, she replied, "No." 

"I'm sorry."

"What for? It's not like he's dead or anything."

"I know, I'm just-sorry." Joe felt guilty. "Maybe we should try-" he stopped. Did he really want to?

Mimi half-smiled. "Yes, we should. We were stupid, stupid for running away from our problems instead of facing them. We were stupid because we didn't help the ones who needed help. We're stupid because we still haven't tried to talk to them."

Joe looked thoughtfully at the girl he had once been in love with. Yes, she had changed. He sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Now?"

"Why put it off?"

Mimi jumped up and dashed over to the pay phone three yards away. "I still know Michael's number! I hope he still lives there…" She punched in some digits, then waited. Her eyes lit up as someone must've spoken into the phone. She paused slightly, hesitant. "Yamato? Is this Yamato?"

"Mimi? Mimi?"

Mimi's eyes filled with tears. "Oh Yamato, it really is you!"

"I can't believe it! Where are you?"

She swiped away the threatening tears. "San Diego, California," she said, her voice quavering slightly.

Joe smiled sadly. There was no turning back now. Isn't this what you really want, after all? He asked himself. Our unseparable group…we'll be made one again soon.

Mimi was still talking. "Yamato, Joe and I are here, and we're going to find some way to get back to New York, okay?" she paused again. "Who-who else is there?"

"Michael, of course, Hikari, Koushirou, Ken, and Iori."

"Only…only six? Out of 13…"

"Don't worry, Mimi. Koushirou and Ken have a plan that sounds like it could really work…depending on how good their hacking and programming skills are…"


	9. Hackers?

Intro: Next chapter

Intro: Next chapter! Sorry if it seems unrealistic. Yes, I know the official ages of the digidestined, but I have a hard time believing them, so I changed the first season kid's ages. Hmm, not sure if that info about Diablomon is correct, but that's ok, just bear with me, K?

Across America

Chapter 8: Hackers? 

Matt and Mimi's reunion was one of the sweetest things Kari had ever seen. After arriving at the airport to pick up Mimi and Joe, Matt had been the first to sight them. Naturally. Disregarding all luggage, chairs, tables, and people that got in the way, the two flew into each other with a deep hug and kiss. They stayed like that for about 30 seconds. If Oniichan was here, he would have ruined the scene by making a gagging sound or coughing or whistling, Kari thought sadly. Izzy must have realized what she was thinking, because he gave her an encouraging pat on the back. 

"Hey guys," Joe said. "Nice to see you again. I'll be right back." He dashed off somewhere.

"Where's he going?" Matt asked, his arms wrapped around Mimi.

She giggled. "Must be off to call Emma, his girlfriend. She's really nice, but they call each other so much!" She had met Emma at the San Francisco airport, since Joe wanted to pick up more things. "She said that if Joe was going back to Japan or living somewhere else, call her right away, so she could pack!" Mimi's dreamy smile lit up her face. "Those two are so cute!"

Kari smiled too, but wistfully. Everyone was coming together, why couldn't she? Why didn't everything work out for her? But she couldn't help smiling, because Mimi seemed fairly unchanged, except looking older and wiser, but still beautiful. Joe, too. His looks were even better, and he was older, wiser, not quite so worried. Her thoughts kept her occupied all the way to her home, and observant Cody finally asked, "Kari? What are you thinking about?"

She blinked, coming out of her thoughts. "Er, just glad Mimi and Joe are with us." She forced one of her "sweet" smiles up for him. "We're finally getting reunited!"

"Y-yeah," Cody agreed. "Is it all right if I call Korinn when we get back? I want to tell her."

"Of course!"

The ten young men and women piled into Michael and Kari's huge home. 

"Are your parents home?" Mimi asked Michael eagerly. "I haven't seen them for four years, and I have to say hello!"

"Um, I don't know," he admitted. "Well, Dad's not home, he's off flying somewhere, let me check and see if Mom's home." He wandered upstairs. "Mom? Mom?"

"What is it, Honey?" a voice responded. "I'm about to go out, okay?"

"Oh, okay, that's fine!" Michael yelled. He turned back to the others and winked. "Mom, some friends are over, okay?"

"Of course that's fine, Michael. Show them to the kitchen and get them something to eat." A pretty woman with strawberry blonde hair and kind gray eyes walked hurriedly down the stairs, Michael close behind. She greeted Michael's friends distractedly and kissed Kari on the head. "Kari, honey, please show them around. Dinner's in the fridge." She left quickly. 

Kari grinned. She loved Michael's mother, who's traits included being late nine times out of ten. "So, would you guys like the grand tour?"

* * *

After showing Joe and Mimi around, the group piled into Michael's spacious room with full stomachs. "All right, what's our next course of action?" Michael asked.

There was a second's silence. "Well, find the others, of course," said Cody slowly. "I mean, five more…"

"Oniichan, Sora-san, Takeru-kun, Daisuke-kun, and Miyako. There must be some way…some way to reach them all!" said Kari, frustrated. "I mean, we've been lucky so far, right? Some luck got us this far."

"But we can't just trust it all to luck," Izzy said quietly. "I have an idea, but…" he glanced at Ken.

At first Ken simply looked confused. Then, his blue eyes widened. "No!" he said slowly, realization dawning on him. "No way am I gonna…" he trailed off. "Besides, it would be practically impossible!"

"Hey, we're the Chosen Children," laughed Izzy. "Isn't nothing supposed to be impossible for us?"

"Um, what are we talking about here?" asked Cara. She and Ken were sitting next to each other holding hands and looking embarrassed. "Ken, no way are you gonna do what?"

"Er, well…"

"What?"

"It's…illegal, isn't it?"

"WHAT?" chorused everyone in the room except for Izzy and Ken.

"Well…hacking," Ken replied, cringing slightly. "Izzy and I do a lot of stuff with computers, you know, programming and stuff, and well…we know how to hack."

Kari, Cara, and Jess glanced at each other and started giggling. Matt gave them a slightly withering look. "Hey, at least they have an idea!" 

"No, we're not laughing at the idea," Jess giggled. "It's just that Kari was telling us about how you Chosen Children were supposed to save the world, and stop evil, and all that. And here you are, ready to turn into hackers, breaking the law!"

"It's not like we haven't broken the law before," Matt said. "Remember that time when we hitchhiked…" he glanced at Izzy and blushed. Izzy started laughing hysterically. 

"Oh hoho, yes I do remember that! Too bad Kari wasn't there yet," he choked out. 

Kari rolled her eyes. "Well, Oniichan told me about that," she said. ("Should've known," grumbled Matt.) "When some blonde chick tried picking you up at the age of 13!"

The whole room rocked with laughter. Matt laughed, too. "Yeah, yeah, but come on guys, let's get serious. Can you two really hack?"

Izzy and Ken nodded slightly guiltily. "We've, uh, tried it before, on a small scale. But I was thinking, if we could tap into all the electronics in the U.S., finding the other five would be no problem!"

Everyone stared at Izzy. The redhead was starting to look embarrassed as well. "Well, it was just an idea," he said lamely.

"No, no, it's a good idea," Michael assured. "Just, um, short of impossible."

"Well, there's Gennai-san, and my old laptop, (I still have it) not to mention the resources of the Digital World." He looked brightly at them. "We can go to the Digital World for a bit!"

"In the meantime, that's something to do," Cody agreed. "We should ask Gennai-san about this idea, see what he thinks. In case it upsets the balance of the worlds or something."

"Can we come along too?" asked Jess. "Is it allowed? Can we?"

"Of course!" 

* * *

"Wow," said Cara. She had said it about five times already. "That was-wow."

"Coming through the Digital Gate can be a shock the first time," Kari assured. "It's harmless."

Around them was an expanse of green. The sky was blue, the air was sweet, and the breeze was soft. White, puffy clouds decorated the sky sparsely like fluffy cotton balls. "It feels great to be back!" Izzy exclaimed enthusiastically. "I can't wait to see Tentomon!"

"Did someone call my name?" a voice called out. The voice belonged to…a red bug? 

"Tentomon!" Izzy cried delightedly, giving the creature a hug.

Cara and Jess looked totally weirded out. "Well, I told you some of them look weird," sighed Kari.

"Who looks weird?" muttered Tentomon.

"Kari!" a small white cat bounded out of nowhere. "You found the others!"

The two partners gave each other a tight hug. "Tailmon, I'm so glad to see you!" Kari cried. She buried her face in white fur.

"Tailmon?" chorused Jess and Cara. "Isn't that the name of my cat…?" asked Jess. "Oh, I get it."

"Jess, Cara, I'd like you to meet my partner digimon, the original Tailmon," Kari introduced.

The cat's sky blue eyes focused onto the two new humans. "Pleased to meet you. Hikari has told me a lot about you two." Her alto voice was soothing and smooth. 

"Hey, Tailmon! Are the others coming?" yelled Matt eagerly. Tailmon nodded and pointed behind him. The other 11 digimon were rushing towards them. 

"Word travels fast in the Digital World," smirked the kitty. "Or at least the feelings of partners," she said, softer.

* * *

"What you're suggesting is tricky," frowned Gennai. He sat with the group and their digimon, listening to their ideas. "It would be one thing to access data from the Digital World and send information, but to cross to the real world…it won't be easy, I can tell you."

"But it's possible, right?" asked Izzy. "To use my laptop and the resources of the Digital World to tap into the electronics of the real world?"

"Nothing's impossible in the Digital World, as I dare say you've learned, but, that doesn't anything's easy." The formerly old-looking man sighed. "It sure has been a long time though. I haven't seen anyone except for Hikari and Sora for the past four years." When no one said anything, Gennai opened his eyes. "What? What is it?" 

Everyone stared at the old man. "Ano…Gennai-san…did you just say you saw Sora-san in the Digital World?" asked Kari shakily. When the handsome man nodded, Kari stared unbelievingly at Piyomon. The bird avoided her gaze, staring at the ground.

"When was this?" demanded Tailmon. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Piyomon burst into tears. "Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai! I would've told you, honest, but Sora made me promise not to say anything…I know Hikari-chan wanted to know, but…I was so afraid I wouldn't get to see her anymore! She made me promise! A promise!"

Kari swallowed, then smiled gently. "It's okay, Piyomon. I understand. It was partly my fault. I never thought to ask Gennai-san. But can you tell us anything about where Sora is?"

Sora's partner shook her head. "She never said anything, she just wanted to see the Digital World again, visit me," Piyomon bowed her head. "I think she really did want to see you again, but she…"

"Well anyway," said Izzy uncomfortably, "Can't I plug into something like I did with Etemon's Dark Network? I got access to good stuff there."

"You can access data at my home."

* * *

"I get the feeling maybe we shouldn't have come," Cara grumbled. "I can't even understand what everyone is saying."

"Come on Car, you know some Japanese!"

"Not enough."

"Well anyway, it doesn't matter, I think you got the gist of it, right?" asked Kari.

"No!"

"I'll fill you in later."

It took a while to reach Gennai's lake, and Cody, Jess, Cara, Michael, and Ken gasped with surprise to see the lake part to reveal Gennai's old-fashioned Japanese home. "We might as well get started," Ken sighed. Izzy connected his old Pineapple laptop to a port in Gennai's library, the same library they had once gathered in. At once, his screen lit up with his old familiar screen, but there was a dialog box in Japanese: Would you like to connect? 

The screen lit up with a few seconds of incomprehensible gibberish, then into swirly portals not unlike the ones some of their digimon had traveled through while trying to find Diablomon. "Where do I go from here?" Izzy thought out loud. "Let's see, I want to get access to the real world…complete access to the whole Internet…all control over electronics…go over here…now down this way…here we go!" The screen traveled wildly through what appeared to be tunnels and entered a new screen…

"Hey, that's where we fought Diablomon! Why are we going here?" asked Matt.

"Well, if your recall, Diablomon traveled around the world and shut down almost all electronics, and one of his destinations was America. There was a map…my thought is to trace back to that map, and if we "consume" all the data, we'll have control of it, right?"

"I suppose…"

"Now I'm really lost," complained Cody. "I know who Diablomon is, but a map of America? Consuming data?"

"Diablomon consumed all the data on the Internet to mess up all electronics," explained Matt. "And it worked. Izzy is proposing to do the same thing, so we can send a message over radios, TVs, stuff like that, am I right?"

"Bingo!" Izzy grinned. "Matt caught on fast."

"But…won't it take time to consume all that data? Diablomon did it pretty fast, but we're not a powerful evil digimon."

"Ken's little bugs should do the trick, right Ken?"

Ken coughed. "Hehe, yeah…"

"Bugs, Ken?" Kari asked, amused. "Have you been a bad boy?"

"Well, no, I used to program stuff when I was the Kaizer, you know, hacking stuff and the like, but I never used those, and they were still on my laptop."

"All right, stick them in!" Izzy announced. Ken typed a bunch of mumbo jumbo in the picture of America. Right away, things that looked like digital cockroaches swept through the data maze on the screen, moving so fast it was hard to follow them. "See, it's working! I knew we could do it!"

The bugs finished in record time, as Ken hurriedly typed something else to stop them from moving on to the rest of the world. "But what if they left and went to a different country?" gasped Kari, a new fear springing up. "Oh man, I never thought of that before!"

"Then we'll move on to the rest of the world," said Matt with flourish. "Don't worry, Kari. It'll work out for us."

Kari bit back a reply. How could she not worry? She had worried every day of four years.

"Okay, I think I know how to do this," Izzy reported nervously. "Of course, now that electronics are in my control, what should I do?" 

"Voice mail?" suggested Matt. "Oh wait, do that thing where we could see each other and our digimon through a screen and put it through."

Izzy swallowed a deep breath. "Here we go…"

Okay, I need advice. Should there be three more chapters, or two? The epilogue is definitely a separate chapter, but should I make a separate chapter for Tai and Sora or just put them in the last chapter (besides the epilogue, of course) I dunno what to do!"


	10. Sora & Taichi

Intro: Ok, I'm doing three chapters more instead of two

Intro: Ok, I'm doing three chapters more instead of two. Here's Tai and Sora's chapter (TK is in the last chapter and the epilogue) Sorry if anyone is unhappy about the couplings, and I admit I'm not a big fan of some of the couples I've put in, but I wanted to put different couples in my stories, even if I don't actually like the couple very much. I warn you, this chapter is going to be very short, and it's possible the next two will be fairly short too, I don't know yet, heehee! I don't really have any ideas about what to put in about Tai and Sora and TK, which is why these were last (hoping for inspiration) and so short…

Across America

Chapter 9: Tai & Sora

She knew she shouldn't do it. Every visit became more strained, but she had to. Piyomon was one of her closest friends, her partner. Sora felt bad about making Piyomon not say anything about her visits, but as long as none of the other digimon found out, it was okay. Well, she couldn't right now anyway. She stuck her hair, now grown a few inches past her shoulders with that outwards curl, in a high ponytail. She glanced hastily in a mirror at her reflection. Coppery brown eyes stared back at her. A small smile crept on her pretty features as she remembered her partner's words: "You look so grown up now, Sora! Sort of like when I first met you!" It was true. Sora had retained her bangs and the parts on the side that hung in front. Grabbing a jacket, she left her apartment complex and went to her part-time job. Pillsbury Bakery was only a couple blocks away, but Sora needed to get there early in the morning, as early as when the sun rose. Today it was a flaming, eye-smarting creature rising from its dwelling in a vast lake, turning the gray sky into a shining pastel of gold, pink, lavender, and peach, with just the hints of crimson and sky color. The creature swept away the silver of the early morning, blowing it back around any of the viewers, with a wind so refreshing, it was like breathing in a spring morning on the mountains, surrounded by wildflowers. Sora shivered from the crisp briskness. It was nice, but a little too cool for her t-shirt. She pulled on her jacket. Boston mornings were so amazing to her, even after walking in them for over a year. There-the Pillsbury Bakery, with the cheerful Doughboy on the equally cheerful sign.

"Good morning," Sora greeted her friend and fellow worker, Jenny. 

"'Morning, Sora," she replied. "I finally got here before you!"

Sora grinned. "Finally is right. I was just admiring the scenery a little too long, if I got here later than someone who's chronically late!" When Jenny stuck out her tongue, Sora started giggling and replied, "Tsk, tsk, for someone who's 20 years old, she sure acts like a 3 year old!"

"Yeah, yeah, so anyway, why were you late? It's the same beautiful sunrise as yesterday, and you weren't late then."

Sora hesitated. She didn't confide much, and the real reason…

Jenny's light hazel eyes flashed. "Sora, you never tell me anything! I can see it, you're about to make up some excuse again! Come on, we're friends, aren't we? Best friends, maybe, but you're supposed to talk to your best friend!"

Her "best friend" sighed. "I know, I know, and I'm sorry Jenny. I just…don't like to talk about some things. But I'll tell you that I had a bad dream last night and woke up late, and then I was trying to decide something and the time just slipped away."

"All right, all right, I can tell you don't want to talk about it, but you know you can talk to me."

Just then a customer came in, so they stopped talking until the morning rush stopped. Even so, there was an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes.

"Erm, Sora?"

"Yeah, Jen?" 

"You will tell me what's bothering you sometime, right? And about…before you came here?" Jenny asked cautiously. It was always a touchy subject.

But Sora smiled and said, "Of course sometime, just not…right now." I'll tell her, soon. But first I'll see Piyomon again, but…how much should I tell her about…the Digital World? And Taichi…I'm sorry about what I said….I want to see him again. I should tell Jenny about Taichi, she'd have advice. I'll tell her about it all later sometime.

Of course, she would be wrong about that, because then Jenny said, "Well then, let's turn on the radio! Especially since Sora is such a good singer!"

Sora rolled her eyes but obligingly but walked over to an electric radio….

* * *

Miles and miles away, totally bored after a day full of summer school, Yagami Taichi, now going by Tai Kamiya, entered his dorm. Everyday, climbing up and down six flights of stairs. Of course he could take the elevator, but taking the stairs took about the same amount of time, the way those elevators went. Up he went, dragging his big feet up and up and up. Hopefully his roommate was out, which he usually was, thank goodness. His roommate was almost certainly in a gang. Once, he had offered Tai illegal marijuana, trying forcibly to get Tai to smoke some, but Tai punched him, and after that he ignored him. Tai had seriously considered reporting him then and there, and should have. Out of hundreds of possible NICE roommates, I get stuck with a druggie with an attitude like an insane dog, he though tiredly. Oh, we're here…Tai groaned inwardly. Joe was there. How funny it was to have a roommate the absolute opposite of the Jou he knew. And he wondered, like he always did, where Jou was and how he was doing. And that would lead to brooding thoughts to the others, especially his sister, of course, and Sora. 

Without looking up, Joe muttered, "You got a call. Number's over there." He jerked his head toward the phone, with a post-it on it. 

Tai recognized the caller's name and it gave his heart a little leap-it was the apartment manager! He had said he would call this soon only if he could get the apartment for Tai! The apartment wasn't much of a place, not run-down but still very small, and there would still be a roommate, but anybody would be better than Joe!

As if echoing his though, Joe belched and reached under his mattress: his secret stash. Tai rolled his eyes. Really! Enough was enough, he should report Joe there and now. How could I be so stupid? I should have turned him in as soon as I found out. 

Joe reached a hairy hand over on the shelf between the two beds and grabbed the TV remote. "Hey!" said Tai angrily. "It already cost me to help pay for that TV, since we had to do it jointly, and you've been watching all the time whenever you're here, and I'm supposed to pay for you too!"

Joe glared at him. "I didn't ask for your opinion, Kamiya. Shut up."

Tai was about to retort something, thinking, I should pound him here and now! But no, he wasn't that kind of person anymore. Solve with words, not fists. Slowly, he inhaled air and counted to five. In the meantime, his roommate switched on the television. The screen was all white, and there was a voice speaking, a voice that sounded almost familiar. "-and we know most of you are out there. Please, wherever you are, listen! Please, it's important, all-" 

Joe flipped the channel, grumbling.

"-dren, you know who you are. I know-"

With a growl of anger, Joe flipped through all the channels. All were white, with the somehow familiar voice speaking. Joe was flipping so fast and hard, Tai was afraid he was going to break it. "Hey, watch it!" 

But all the anger went out of him as Joe stopped flipping channels, for a face had appeared on the screen, a face that Tai knew well, even after four years: his beloved sister.

Okay, one more chapter and the epilogue. I know, I know, this one was really short, but like I said, I didn't have any ideas for it, only the end. I haven't gotten much of a chance to write this summer either, because I've got summer school and I'm taking a writing class, but I've got lots of essays to write before I can write fics. I'm sorry! I hate that class, I really do, even though it'll probably help my writing….so that's why I haven't been writing lately.


	11. Happy Ending...?

Intro: Hehe, it's me again

Intro: Hehe, it's me again! Man, I hate writing stuff besides fiction! Only two chapters to go! This and the epilogue…I hope it turns out all right. Wow, when I finish, it'll be the first story I'll ever have finished. School projects and my other completed fic don't count because it didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. Hopefully, this will! I hope the name changes aren't too confusing. Just remember, I'm calling them by their English names, but for instance, TK doesn't realize Hikari is now going by Kari. Hopefully, this chapter isn't really cheesy or anything, and it's not the end yet! One more chapter, the epilogue and final conclusion.

Across America

Chapter 10: Happy Ending…?

Former Takeru Takaishi wandered the streets of Chicago. Now he went under the name TK Ishida, not even knowing why. Because someone was looking for him? He glanced at his watch. Good, he still had 15 minutes to get to Dave's house. He could wander freely around throughout New Gardens Plaza, the new shopping center. Not like he needed to buy anything, but he was so bored…He missed her. He wouldn't be bored if she was there, next to him, smiling her angelic smile and laughing her shimmering laugh. I don't deserve her, not if I made someone else hurt so badly, on purpose, even. He recalled Daisuke's angry, hurt expression as he turned and ran away. I never even realized how much he cared about her…

TK pulled out of his thoughts. I just hope they're all right, and that's all. Nothing more. He entered one of the "courtyards" of the shopping center. This one had a beautiful white marble fountain in the center, and fragrant, rainbow-colored flowers growing in the pattern of a fully bloomed rose, which made it rather like a hedge maze of colors. He easily navigated to the center fountain and sat. He fumbled in his wallet for a penny, then hesitated. Should I? Should I wish to see her? Why not? It wasn't about to come true anytime soon anyway. The bright, orange sheen of copper caught in the sun as the blond boy tossed the penny into the sparkling clear water, revealing dozens of other coins, mostly pennies. He sat again and lost himself in dull thoughts once again as the minutes ticked by, totally forgetting that he should leave for Dave's by now. He was so deep in his thoughts, he didn't even hear the voice echoing on the loudspeaker at first.

"-most of you are out there. Please, wherever you are, listen! Please, it's important! All Chosen Children, you know who you are. I know you are probably listening anyhow…"

TK's head snapped up. No, it couldn't be! He recognized the voice right away, especially after just thinking about it. "Hi-hikari-chan?" he stammered, looking around confusedly. How-where-? Then he remembered the big screen in another "courtyard," although it had no flower maze or fountain, just a big square. The screen was as big as a movie screen, and all loudspeaker announcements were played on it, as well as ads. He gasped and flung himself to the nearest hedge maze exit, not remembering in his state of panic where the exit was. Dashing madly, he found himself at a dead end. But there were so few dead ends, and yet he managed to hit most of them. He could still hear her voice, clear and gentle. TK gave a cry of despair as he ran into another dead end! He'd never get out! He'd never see her again! In desperation, he turned and ran again.

* * *

Kari took a deep breath to steady herself. All of a sudden she felt faint. All the eyes of America were upon her, watching, wondering. And the five other Chosen Children…what were they thinking? Especially Takeru…This is no time to get stage fright! She scolded herself. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the crowd of Chosen Children and Digimon giving her encouraging signs and smiles. And her two best friends…she had to be strong for all of them. "Why do I have be the one to do it?" she had grumbled, although of course there was no other real choice. She had the connection to all the missing Children. Daisuke, who she had a big apology to give to. Miyako, her old best friend. Sora, who she had known since Taichi had befriended her when they met at the same elementary school after moving, her Oniichan, who had always been strong for her, and of course Takeru, who she loved and could only hope that he still loved her and was all right. That they were all all right. She drew another shaky breath and stood tall, although trembling. It was time to really talk to them.

* * *

TK finally cleared the maze. He looked around wildly. Which way was it to the big square? He stopped for a second to really listen to Hikari's voice, hear what she was saying. She had been saying something to Daisuke and then Miyako, now Sora. Whatever she had said, it had been important and emotional, for now he could hear the sorrow in her voice. Wait! Her voice! It was loudest going…to his left! TK gulped in a breathful of sweet air before taking off at top speed once again.

* * *

"First off…first off, Daisuke-kun, I owe you an apology. A big one. For two years, you had a big crush on me…and I…I knew about it." Hikari hung her head, ashamed and guilty. "I even had the nerve to play with your feelings, toying with you, making you jealous. Some all-good bearer of Light, huh?" she laughed sarcastically. "I knew it was so wrong, but I still did it! I don't know what happened, but I'm so sorry. I made you hurt, hoping, stuck, when I should've just told you straight out that I wasn't interested, that I…that I cared about someone else, longer than you knew me, but I didn't. I'm not going to pretend and say that I just didn't want to hurt your feelings by telling you 'no' because you and I both know that that's not true. I mean, having the Crest of Light doesn't mean I have to be perfect and I can't enjoy myself, but definitely not like that." She closed her eyes, then looked at the ground. "I know you probably hate me now, so I won't ask for forgiveness," she continued humbly. "I just want you to come back, even if you can't stand me anymore. We all want you back, and if it means anything, you're still one of my best friends in the whole world. Please, wherever you are…please come back to our place.

"And Daisuke-kun wasn't the only one hurt. Miyako, you are also still one of my best friends. I know you were really hurt, too, especially as one of the holders of Love. But please forgive Ken, because he didn't realize your feelings for him. He's innocent, not like me. But our hearts should be as one, since we are Jogress partners, right? So, please understand, and I wish…but please come back to us, come back to the place."

Davis, Yolei, and Wallace had watched all of this in silence. It had been a shock, when the program they had been watching vanished into white, then to Hikari, but all three kept silent. Wallace had been wise enough not to say anything during the talk, and wasn't surprised to see tears in both of his companions' eyes as they struggled with their emotions.

Finally, Davis managed to say, "Well, I guess that's our cue to leave, Yolei."

Yolei squeezed his hand and nodded, but then sniffed and wiped her eyes. "Yes, we've put it off long enough, I guess. Let's go back…"

They stood as one and made their way to Wallace's laptop, with their two digivices that went everywhere with them. Davis paused and turned to face Wallace. "Um…we have to go…I mean, we'll come back, but for right now…"

Wallace shook his head. "You don't have to explain, buddy. I understand."

His friend nodded seriously. "Thanks for everything, Wallace. I'll see you again soon."

Yolei flashed a quick smile in the blond boy's direction. Both turned and held out their D-3's to the computer screen, and for a second, there was a blinding golden light that made Wallace shut his eyes and hide them with his arm. When opened his eyes and squinted to see, his two friends were gone.

* * *

Sora's eyes were wide with shock. Jenny had never seen her friend so surprised before. Of course, having someone start talking to you over a radio, and when you switched the station, the person was still talking, well! That certainly was a big shock. The voice had started talking to some other people Jenny didn't know, but then she said, "And Sora-san…" and Sora's eyes got even wider. It was obvious that Sora was the Sora the person was talking to. 

"Sora-san, you have a reason to be hurt, too, but I wouldn't worry about it at all. Come on, you know Oniichan can be an insensitive clod if he's not thinking straight, and that was just a bad time to ignore your feelings and yes, his feelings. Sora-san, Oniichan loved you before our group every made it together. True, sometimes he didn't seem like it, but he has always cared about you, so please, don't be angry and hurt, because you both have cared about each other for as long as I can remember, so you'll make it through. You know where I am, and where Taichi will be. Please hurry."

Jenny waited for her to say something else, but she had fallen silent for the moment. She turned to Sora, who was still standing there, eyes wide and unmoving. "Er, Sora?"

Sora snapped out of her trance. "I…"

"Didn't that girl say to hurry? You should go to wherever you're supposed to."

Sora blinked, then smiled, wavering at first, but then she looked happier than Jenny had ever seen her. "You're right! Why am I standing around? I gotta go! I'll be back!" And with that, she grabbed her jacket and took off out of the open door. 

Jenny smiled as well. Whatever this was all about, it looked like it was about to be straightened out. And then Sora would be happy. Whistling, she flipped the switch on the radio off (after all, what was important had been said) and went back behind the counter just as a fellow worker came in. He blinked. He was the manager's son, and knew that Sora should be with Jenny. "Where did Sora go?"

"Oh, she didn't feel well," Jenny lied quickly with slightly nervous laughter.

* * *

"And you, Oniichan! Sheesh, you could've told me that you were leaving! You made me worry," she said softer. "I hope you heard what I said about Sora-san, because it applies to you too. You two care too much about each other to let one incident with badly-chosen words to come in your way. Oniichan, I miss you so much! If you don't show up right away, then I'm going to get mad…so please be all right, okay?" The slight banter in her talk was obviously fake when a lone tear slid down her cheek. More tears followed, until she gave in and started to weep. "Oniichan, if you're not all right, I'll…I'll…" she stopped.

That was too much for Taichi, to see his sister crying. Immediately he stumbled over to his computer, as Joe looked on curiously. "What're you doing, Kamiya?"

"None of your business, Joe," he replied as his computer booted up. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out his digivice, hoping that even the older one would bring him back to the Digital World.

* * *

TK continued his frantic dash towards the square. He bumped into numerous people, apologizing loudly as he ran. Had…to…get…there! Her voice faded away after she talked to Taichi. He didn't hear what she said, and at the moment, didn't care, he just had to see her. There! He could see the square, filled with people staring at the screen. TK couldn't see it at first, it was on the side where he couldn't see it until he burst into the square and skidded to a halt and turned, and saw for the first time the girl that filled his dreams. She looked unhappy, as tears were streaming down her face. TK resisted an urge to wipe them away, anyhow he couldn't at the moment. What she said next he heard, for she said his name. "Takeru-kun."

He froze, his mind clearing as she spoke to him, and him alone. "Takeru-kun…I don't know where you are, or if you're safe, and it hurts! I still love you, more than anyone in the world! If you don't feel the same way anymore, it's okay, and I'll understand, but please don't make me wait and wonder about you…" Her sobs continued, as she struggled for the words to say. "I…I want you to come back! I need you! Please…" she whispered. "Please come to me."

As she reached her hand out as if to touch the screen, the scene disappeared. "Hikari-chan…" TK whispered softly, fingers fumbling in his jacket for the D-3 that he knew would be there; he never went anywhere without it. It would take too long to get back home…but Dave's house was only two blocks away! He wheeled around and ran, and ran, and ran…

* * *

Daisuke and Yolei had arrived hand in hand, and it was obvious they had gotten over their hurt, as they embraced both Kari and Ken with enthusiasm and happiness. Kari fought to control her tears, but they kept coming, and coming. As luck would have it, Tai and Sora arrived simultaneously. As soon as they saw each other, they ran to each other's arms and shared a passionate kiss. It was a sweet scene, but disrupted as Matt cleared his throat noisily and extremely exaggerated, as Tai broke off the kiss to glare at him. Kari enfolded her brother in a hug, which he returned with a hug of his own. 

"I'm so glad you're all right, Oniichan," she whispered.

"Me too," he whispered back. "But I have to ask now, before I forget: did you use Kamiya?"

She nodded, and the two smiled, reminiscing at games played years and years ago. For a few moments, she felt extremely happy. But as the minutes ticked by, there was no Takeru. 

"Perhaps he didn't hear it?" suggested Sora. "I just happened to flip on the radio just then."

Izzy shook his head. "It would've turned it on anyway. Or at least, it should've."

The group waited in subdued silence. Kari felt tears sting in her eyes again, and she buried her face in her brother's shoulder and sobbed. 

"If he doesn't show, I'll personally tear apart the U.S. and kill him!" Matt offered sincerely. "He'll show, Kari. Don't worry."

But the silence became more pronounced, as there was no new arrival. Kari bowed her head, despair filling her. He'll never come, he doesn't love me anymore. Even as she stood up, eyes still downcast, he suddenly appeared. He hair was wild, even his eyes looked slightly wild, but they calmed as soon as they saw her. "Hikari!" he choked out.

At first Kari just stared at him, hardly daring to believe it. "T-takeru?" she stammered. "Is it really you?"

He nodded, and she gave a cry of joy and ran into his embrace and a passionate kiss all their own. And this time, no one interrupted.

Well, here's the next chapter. I did this in one day when I should've been working, but oh well. Anyhow, there's one more chapter left (hopefully not as sloppy) and next time I'll give a story preview for my next story. Of course, I have so many ideas, I have no idea which story I'll write next. Maybe I should ask the audience…Ü


	12. Epilogue

Intro: Oh my, the last chapter

Intro: Oh my, the last chapter! I'm excited! I can finally, finally truly finish a story! Well, I don't actually no what would happen if a student missed the high school entrance exams, so I'm just making it up. Same for the seasons…I dunno if Japan and America have autumn at the same time, although I'm assuming they do. And when they're in Japan, the Chosen Children use their Japanese names.

Across America

Epilogue

"Hurry up, they're going to start without us!" 

"Okay, okay, I've only got a little more!" Takeru hurriedly slurped up the remaining ice cream on his cone. 

"And I thought guys were supposed to be the fast eaters?" sighed Hikari. "Come on, slowpoke, you'll just have to eat it as you walk."

The two set off briskly, but slowed down almost immediately. "Well, I guess there's nothing wrong with taking advantage of this lovely autumn weather, is there?" Takeru said extravagantly. "And with an ice cream cone and beautiful girl to share it with, it's the perfect day!"

The two held hands as they traveled into the view of the large apartment complex that the Yagami family lived in. Takeru crunched into his cone as Hikari smiled at his young look. Though it had been so many years, they were finally together. And yet…the smiled faded from her face. Somehow, she just couldn't be completely happy. "I miss them," she said suddenly. "I miss Ken, Iori, Jess, and Cara." _And I'll keep missing them_, she added silently.

Takeru studied her for a second before replying, "I miss them too. We all do."

"I know…it's not the same without them…"

"No it isn't," he agreed. "They're not here in Japan, and we are. Of course we miss them, but we'll still see each other a lot. We'll still be a group."

"Are we?" Hikari asked sadly. "We're not the same. We're all different now."

Takeru sighed. She just didn't seem to understand. "Hikari…of course we're not the same. Of course we're still really different from each other, like we always have been."

"It just…doesn't feel the same to me."

"Look up," Takeru instructed. "See those leaves?" A small smile appeared on Hikari's face. The sight of the almost glowing red and gold leaves was too beautiful not to enjoy. "Well, over in America, all of our friends are seeing those and knowing that we're seeing them too."

"How?" she asked stupidly.

"Because they'll _know_. Because we're that close."

Now Hikari sighed. "I guess." _Maybe our gap will close in time_. The two shared an uncomfortable silence as they entered the huge building. "Umm…well, it's been quite a busy past few months!"

Takeru agreed. It hadn't been easy, since they weren't in high school yet in Japan, and the high school entrance exams had been so hard. He groaned aloud as he remembered all the hours spent cramming and panicking. This beautiful Sunday felt so incredibly welcome…

But Hikari was thinking farther back than that. Back to the start of summer…how long ago it seemed! All the worry, sadness, and waiting had just drained away, though not completely. And the end…

* * *

"What? You're staying!?" 

Cody nodded. "I'm sorry, but I can't leave anymore."

Davis grinned. "Ho ho, must be that Korinn I heard about!" When the smaller boy flushed, Davis knew he had hit home. 

"Well, yeah, that's part of it," he admitted, "but I have a home back in Kansas, and a family."

"But what about your family back in Japan?" asked Kari worriedly. "They haven't waited four years for nothing, have they?"

"No, of course not. I'm going to visit them as often as I can, and I'm going to visit them when you all go back. I already talked to my family, and well…they weren't particularly happy, but they were really understanding…" Cody rushed, "and and, if it turns out that it just doesn't work, my family here will understand if I go back…"

"No, no, I think it would be better if you stayed," said Ken. "Although…is that selfish of me? Because I wanted to stay too. Except my parents will be moving here."

Kari looked aghast. "But…but…separate our group again? Be apart?" Suddenly she blinked. "What am I saying? Of course you should stay here, this is where your hearts belong!" she shook her head incredulously. "What was I thinking? I'm the one being selfish!"

"Nah, I understood how you feel Kari," agreed Davis. "Man, I'll really miss you guys though!"

"I think we're all a little selfish when it comes to love," said Cara. "Heheh, if Ken wasn't going to stay here, I might have had to chain him in the basement!" Everyone laughed at that, with the exception of Ken, who turned bright red, and after a moment, so did Cara. "Did I just say that? Well, I meant it!"

"But you could have told us you were staying before the day before we leave!" scolded Kari. "Give us more time to spend together!"

"It's not like we're vanishing again."

"I know…it's just…"

"Hey, I wouldn't worry about missing their company!" said TK, winking. "Not when you've got me!"

"Haha, I think this boy here got more arrogant living alone in Chicago!" laughed Davis.

"I'm not arrogant! Take that back, you goggle boy!"

"Do you see any goggles on me? No!"

Everyone sweatdropped. "Well, I guess some people stop arguing over time, and some argue more," sighed Tai. 

"Hey, we still argued sometimes!" Matt exclaimed.

"I think this final meeting has gone downhill," Yolei sighed. "Boys!"

"And you're in love with one of them," Mimi reminded. "And oh, by the way, my family is moving back to Odaiba."

* * *

"Thank you so much!" Kari sobbed, throwing herself one last time into the arms of her adoptive mother and father. They hugged her tightly in turn, their daughter for the past four years.

"Why don't you come with us?" asked Michael. "Dad could fly!"

"Sorry, son, but I've got some work to do, besides, if you drag out your leaving, you'll see your poor father cry a bucket full."

Kari laughed weakly at that. Michael's mother smiled warmly at her. "Come on, honey, don't cry, we'll see you soon, I promise. But I'll tell you one thing now," her voice dropped to a whisper. "You're the best daughter ever! I love you so much, Kari."

Kari cried even harder at her touching words. "Thanks so much, Mom," she managed to whisper back. "Thank you for everything."

Everyone kept a respectful silence for Kari and her family as they said goodbye. However, Michael finally said, "I'm sorry Kari, but it's time to leave."

The girl nodded. "I know, I heard." After giving her parents one last hug, she joined the others to board the airplane. Michael, Jess, and Cara were coming with them, and of course Cody, Ken, were going to visit with them as well. 

The flight was long and subdued, each child and young adult carrying his or her own thoughts. However, the reunion with old friends and family was anything but subdued. The parents had made a huge sign reading WELCOME BACK TO ODAIBA (in Japanese, of course), and smiles and happy tears were all around. The best scene Hikari remembered though, was when Yamato and Takeru were reunited with their remarried parents. Takeru had once confided in her that that was his deepest wish, and it had come true. 

* * *

Kari sighed again. Even with all the happiness going around, she still missed her old friends in America. Takeru heard her sigh. "Hey, cheer up, Hikari, we'll see them all soon, I'm sure."

"I know," she smiled. "I'll just be unhappy while we don't."

The two entered the Yagami apartment, where a meeting was being held, but it was more of just a hang-out. There was nothing really to discuss, anyhow. Taichi and Sora sat on his bunk, his arm around her. Yamato and Mimi were in a similar position, sitting next to them but on the ground. Daisuke and Miyako, like Takeru and Hikari, simply held hands, also sitting on the ground. Jou shared the desk seat with Emma. Strangely, the only person now absent was Koushiro.

"Where's Koushiro-san?" Takeru asked. "He's never late!"

Taichi shrugged. "Maybe something came up?"

Takeru and his "partner" sat themselves on her bunk above the others. Everyone started chatting away, except for Hikari, still lost in her thoughts. _Where is Koushiro-san anyway? What if something happened? What if he…what, what am I thinking? There I go again, Hikari you are really losing it. _She shook her head. Her thoughts were becoming so unrealistic! _I'm just worried, that's all. Anybody could be after what happened four years ago. _But the happy atmosphere around proved her wrong. She sighed again. _Why me? Why am I the only one that's worried? Why…why am I the only one that doesn't understand?! They all do, I can see that they do. They miss our friends too, but why am I the only one that's feeling it? I know what Takeru said earlier, about being really close and knowing each other, but there's a barrier between us now! We can chat like old friends, but we're all so different now! Well, not completely, and I don't think I've changed, but…_She looked carefully at all her friends. Takeru, a little more withdrawn and quiet. Oniichan, even more responsible and careful. Sora-san, even more grown-up, but more happy now. Yamato-san, more open and cheerful. Mimi-san, more calm and wise. Jou-san, more at ease with himself and happier. Daisuke-kun, more mature and grown-up, and Miyako, more quiet and not as happy as before. And of course all the others had changed..._Not me, not me, still the same old worrywart as _before_. But I could always understand! _Frustration mounted, as she thought, _I want to figure this out! I don't want to be the only one who can't feel the bond that everyone else can! There's a bond, I can feel it, but there's a gap too! _And then she blinked. _Hikari, you are such a baka!_ Of course, that was it! All this time spent moping and feeling disconnected, all for nothing! Yes, she was sort of disconnected, they all were. _But we're still a group, we're still one, like Takeru said. Because we're the Chosen Children, we share an unbreakable bond. Even thought there's a gap, we can bridge it. And if we can't, oh well. We're still one in heart, us here and across the world. _

Takeru smiled at her. "Figured it out, right?"

"But how…?"

"Because we're that close. Because we're the Chosen Children, we're all pieces of the same heart."

"Well, if you put it so poetically…"

_Yup, no matter how pretty he says it, he's right. I must have just been on something or something. And I thought I was perceptive! We'll always be one, we'll always conquer all._

Just then Koushiro burst through the door, his old Pineapple laptop in hand. "Everybody!" he gasped. "I just…got a message…from Gennai! He says that there's a new enemy in the Digital World! I contacted the other children, we gotta go!"

There were gasps all around, but Hikari simply smiled, and Takeru squeezed her hand. _No, it won't matter if there's a new, powerful enemy, or whatever else gets in our way. I won't be afraid, and I won't be weak, nothing will destroy us. Because this time, we'll face it together._

"Shall we go?"

Wow, I finished it. I hope the end wasn't too disappointing or strange or boring, I hope everyone enjoyed my fanfic. Yup, it's definitely over. But I planned other fics that I hope will be enjoyable. Here are summaries, I guess. Not sure which one I'm gonna do next.

Digimon/Card Captor Sakura crossover: After Sakura moves to Odaiba because of her father's job transfer (of course there is a way for Tomoyo, Syaoran, and Yukito to come along), her Sakura Cards start to disappear! She tracks them down after being sucked into the school's computer and finds…her new friends with strange creatures called digimon?? What does Demon want with the Sakura Cards? What is going on with this Digital World? Can Sakura and Co. help the Chosen Children defeat Demon? What are the Children going to think about this? (Hehe, sounds kinda strange…)

Ranma ½ fic: A day at the beach turns disastrous when Ranma is pulled into deep water and almost drowned, and of course, while drifting in the ocean, a storm pops up. After washing up to the shore of an island with no hot water, Ranma remembers nothing about herself, family, and friends. When Ranma meets the Tendos again after a year, what will Akane say, especially when it seems Ranma may be in love with someone else? And who was the person who almost drowned her in the first place? For once, a new possible fiancee is caused not by their fathers, but by the Tendo's mom! (Sounds even stranger, ne?)

And last, perhaps a fic about Neopets, or more specifically, my Neopets and their adventures in Neopia. Don't know what Neopets is? Click the button below to check it out! 

[][1]

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Yes, I know I suck at writing summaries, so I'm sorry. And again, I hope you enjoyed "Across America" and enjoy any fics of mine you might read in the future. Thank you!

   [1]: http://www.neopets.com/refer.phtml?username=hikari_aster



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